Surviving with You
by PassionForGrey
Summary: Christian and Ana are homeless. They are just trying to survive in a dangerous city where anything can happen. Set in the City of Detroit. APOV/AU/OOC Rated M for violence and language. *I do not own the FSoG characters.*
1. Prologue

_**Surviving With You: Prologue**_

 _ **1983**_

 _ **Detroit, Michigan**_

"Christian, Ana, come here please," I slur.

I sway to and fro, and throw my left hand against the wall to try and keep my balance. A cheap bottle of vodka in my other hand. I glance inside my bedroom and spot my son Christian and Ana huddled together under a blanket on the dirty worn out mattress.

It was never supposed to be like this.

This was not the life I had envisioned for my child.

I hate myself for doing this to him. I hate myself for letting _him_ abuse my son. I hate that _we_ let that monster hurt our two perfect angels.

Carla and I were inseparable as children. We grew up together in a small town in northern Texas. We always said we were going to marry a rich man, and that they were going to take us away from that small Texas town. As fate would have it, Carla met a guy named Frank who was in the Army. He was on leave and was set to ship out overseas that week.

Carla lost her virginity to him. I lost my virginity to one of his friends who was in the same unit.

I would always think back to that night. The night I felt so safe and cherished. I didn't know his name or what his parents did for a living. I never knew if he had any siblings, or what he preferred when it came to cake or ice cream. All I remember of him was his hair and eyes. Brown with a hint of red, and crystal clear blue eyes. Those same eyes that would always haunt me in my dreams.

When we both woke up that morning, they were gone.

A couple of months later, we both found out we were pregnant. It's funny how we both got knocked up at the same time at the age of seventeen.

My parents gave me two choices. Have the baby and I get kicked out, or have an abortion.

I choose to have the baby.

My parents kicked me out and Carla's parents did the same thing to her. We both packed up everything we could carry and left.

We both hitched hiked as far as we could. When we got to Tennessee, we met a man named Tony that said he would help us out. Since we were both pregnant, and with nowhere to go, we both agreed.

That was the first biggest mistake we ever had made.

He drove us to Detroit since he said that is where he 'worked.' We thought that we would be waitresses at a diner or at least something that could help us start over. Little did we know, that once we gave birth, that we would become addicted to drugs and sell ourselves for money.

So here we are, five years later in this shitty ass apartment, in the slums of Detroit, Michigan, where Tony, our pimp, is having sex with Carla in the other room so we can have some cash so we can feed our kids.

A lone tear slips out of the corner of my eye when I see my son walking towards me with his hand in Ana's.

Christian is such a good little boy. He is intelligent, smart, funny and very sensitive. He has his father's floppy copper colored hair and my gray eyes.

Ana is such beautiful little girl. Long brown hair, bright powder blue eyes, an upturned nose, and rosy cheeks.

Christian and Ana are inseparable, just like Carla, and I was at their age. We were both so close as children and as teenagers. I am thankful that they have each other.

"Yes, momma?" Christian whispers.

The bottle of vodka slips out of my hand as I lean over and softly kiss my son on his forehead.

"Are you both hungry?" I run my fingertips through his hair.

"Yes," they both say in unison.

I chuckle and kiss them both on the cheek.

Suddenly, the door to the other room slams open and out walks Tony who is trying to button up his pants. I stand in front of the kids and try to stand up straight. He's drunk.

He finally buttons his pants and runs his hand through his dirty, unwashed hair and looks up at me.

"Ella, your turn. Get your ass in here!" he snarls.

I nod weakly and turn around and look down at the kids. They are both holding each other tightly. Ana's eyes are closed tightly, and Christian is running is hand through Ana's hair soothingly. I choke back a sob.

This wasn't the life I wanted for them. I didn't want this. I didn't want my kids to be nearly starved to death. I didn't want them to have a mother who couldn't put food on the table, or couldn't provide them with proper clothes to wear.

We failed them.

Tony stomps over to me and pulls my hair and smashes his mouth to mine. I can smell the stench of alcohol on his breath. His disgusting tongue slips into my mouth, and he grinds his crotch into me. He pushes me back, and I immediately look to see where the kids are. I look towards the bedroom, and they are huddled together on the mattress. They are both silently crying, and both are shivering. More tears slip out of my eyes when he drags me to the bedroom and throws me on the bed next to a passed out Carla.

I curl up into a ball and cry.

I can hear Tony unbuttoning his pants in the background, and I faintly hear sobbing in the other room where the kids are trying to sooth each other. This causes me to cry harder into the dirty mattress.

He suddenly pulls my legs down and roughly pulls my jeans off of my legs. I close my eyes tightly and imagine I am somewhere else. Somewhere where our kids are laughing and playing happily in a large meadow. There are no pimps. No drugs. No hunger. No abuse. No uncertainty.

Some place where there is no fear.

But right now, fear and uncertainty are what they will ever know.

* * *

 _ **AN: This story will be different than any other story I have written. It is AU/OOC. No cheating but there will be violence and language. I am still working on A Different Path to Fifty and that story will be coming to an end soon.**_

 ** _This story will probably be hard to read for some so I just want to warn you all beforehand._**

 ** _I do moderate guest reviews, and I am all for constructive criticism, but if there are reviews that simply want to complain or attack me for whatever reason, I am deleting them. I love reading your reviews but I cannot stand the coward guests who love to simply bash writers just because. If you do not like the story, DON'T READ IT. I know this story will be hard to read but if you do not like the direction it is going, then just stop reading._**

 ** _The story will probably be in short chapters. I usually aim for 2,000-2,200 words but writing shorter chapters will help me update faster than I usually do. I will update when I can so please bear with me._**

 ** _Thank you to all the lovely ladies at FSoG Fanfic Obsessed for encouraging me to post the story a little early. You guys are awesome. :)_**

 ** _Chapter one will be in set in the future. Let me know what you all think and if you are interested, I will continue it._**

 ** _I will set up a Pinterest page here soon and I will post a link when I have one up._**


	2. Chapter 1

_**September, 1998**_

 _ **Ana**_

"What are you doing babe?" I look at him in confusion.

He looks at me and gives me a smirk over his shoulder while he shimmies the lock on the door.

"What does it look like Anastasia? I'm keeping my promise to you," he winks at me.

I roll my eyes as he continues to pick the lock.

We are standing in the blistering cold on a Friday night. My birthday is tomorrow, and Christian promised me that he was going to find us a bed to sleep on for my special day. I bite my lip at the opportunities that awaits us inside.

He smirks as the door suddenly opens. I jump up and down, excited to get out of this cold and into the warm heat. He looks back at me and smirks again.

"Come in my dear," he bows playfully.

I giggle and enter the house. He comes inside and closes and locks the door. I look around the room and automatically see that he picked a decent one this time.

Christian and I usually break into houses once or twice a month. Particularly in the winter and when the shelters are usually full to capacity. There are numerous vacant and abandoned homes that we usually spend our nights in, but there are times when we want to stay in houses where there is working heat, and a decent bed instead of a dirty or worn out mattress. A chill goes down my spine when I think of those types of beds.

I shake my head at the direction of my thoughts. I look around the house once more. The house is actually quite nice. It's nothing extravagant, but it's warm, which is enough for us. I look in front of me and there is a staircase that leads up to the second floor.

Christian comes up behind me and moves my hair that is in a messy ponytail and starts kissing my neck. He wraps his arm around my waist and I turn my head to the side so he can have easier access to my neck. I close my eyes and savor the sensation of his lips on my skin.

"I can't wait to make love to you on a proper bed baby," he purrs into my neck.

I groan and lift one of my hands and place it on the back of his neck. I twist and pull his overgrown hair while he continues his assault on my neck.

He suddenly stops kissing my neck and takes ahold of my hand and leads me upstairs. He looks all around him, making sure no one is around. He leads me into a room, which looks like the master, and yanks me inside. I giggle as he shuts the door and turns towards me. I bite my lip as he stalks towards me and pushes me on the bed slowly. The bed is clean and comfy. Two simple pillows lay on the black and white comforter set. A plain black dresser sits in the corner by the bed. I giggle once more and place both my hands above my head and look at him seductively under my lashes.

His eyes darken as he takes off his dirty white shoes. He takes off his white baseball cap that he wears on backwards and throws it on the ground. He then proceeds with his long wool coat, and his torn white shirt, revealing his sexy abs and chest. I squirm and press my legs together. He gives me his sexy smirk as he smooths his long hair behind his head.

He leans over and takes off my beat up black and white converse that we found in a dumpster a while back. When they are off, he unbuttons my jeans and slowly pulls them off. He leans over and kisses the spot just below my navel. I groan and tightly close my eyes.

I open my eyes to him staring at me while he continues to kiss me below my navel. He reaches the top of my white cotton panties and licks the outline of them. I moan loudly and start to pant harder when he slowly takes them off and places them on the floor. He opens my legs and starts to attack my clit. I moan and run my hands through his hair and tug him closer to my sex.

"You taste so good baby," he groans.

"Christian, please. Make me come," I beg.

He pushes one of his fingers inside of me and sucks hard on my clit causing me to fall over the edge. I scream his name over and over again while he continues to roughly thrust his fingers inside of me. I come down from my high and he jumps on top of me and pushes his cock inside of me causing us both to moan out in ecstasy.

He sits up suddenly and throws my legs over his shoulders and fucks me hard and fast. We are both moaning and panting loudly. My head is thrown back as I ball the sheets together with my fists.

"Come for me baby," he demands.

A couple more hard thrusts and I come long and hard. He moans and suddenly pulls out of me and fists himself twice before his semen coats my stomach in several long spurts.

He falls on top of me while we both try to catch our breath. I run my hand through his shoulder length hair and smile when he says happy birthday.

"Thank you," I whisper.

He picks up his head that was laying on my shoulder and stares at me lovingly.

"I love you baby," he says.

"I love you too Christian, so much," I lean up and kiss his lips which are starting to chap from the cold air.

He leans up and looks around the room. I frown as he gets up from the bed as he scans the room. He walks over to the dresser and opens several of the drawers. He takes out a white shirt and walks back over to me. He leans down and starts to clean his semen off of my stomach.

"When did you run out of your pills?" he asks.

"Yesterday," I guiltily.

"Okay, well we need to start thinking about getting more," he sighs.

"It's a long walk babe," I remind him.

"I know but we can't risk you getting pregnant, and we don't have any cash to get condoms," he sighs again and runs his hand through his hair.

We usually get our birth control at the free clinic, but we run into problems getting them because the clinic that we get them from is a long walk from where we usually are living.

He lays down beside me and I cuddle into him. He places his arm around me, and kisses the top of my head. His other arm is thrown beside his head.

"Let's get some sleep. Hopefully, the people who live here are gone for the night," he softly says into my hair.

I nod and cuddle more into his side. After a while, he falls asleep, while I am wide awake.

I start to think back to the time of what would eventually lead us to this point.

The day that Christian's mother died would forever be burned into my memory. We were holding each other on that dirty mattress. We were both trying to rid the sound of her cries in the other room. We knew that something was going to happen that night. After that asshole left our shitty apartment, we both woke up to my mother's heartbreaking cries coming from the living room.

Christian told me to stay where I was and that I was in no way to come out of the room. I nodded at him and sat there in fear. All I could remember next was Christian's scream and awful cries coming from outside of the door. I started to shake when he suddenly started yelling _momma._ Tears streaming down my face when I heard him screaming for her to wake up over and over again, and I knew that something bad had happened.

After a while, he came back into the room. His face covered with his hair since he had is head down. I could see tears hitting the dirty floor beneath him. He launched himself on the mattress and started to cry once more. I placed my hands over his body and held him the best I could while he continued to cry for his mother.

I didn't expect my mom to do what she did after they found his mother unresponsive on the floor. I woke up the next day to a silent apartment. Christian was still asleep, so I left him to go find my mother. Little did I know what awaited me in the living room.

A simple note.

A fucking note that was taped to the coffee table that was addressed to me.

 _Annie,_

 _If you are reading this letter, it means that I am no longer with you. I am so sorry for everything. I am sorry I couldn't be the mother you needed me to be. I am sorry your childhood would be forever tainted because of our bad choices. Ella and I loved you both. We loved you so much, and we are so sorry we couldn't protect you._

 _Just know that we did the best we could. I am sorry this happened, I love Ella. She was like a sister to me, but she couldn't hold on. She wanted a better life for you too, and I do as well._

 _I am so sorry Annie. I love you. Please don't ever forget that._

 _Love,_

 _Mom._

I sat there on the sofa reading that letter over and over again. Tears running down my face as I stared at our mothers dead bodies on the floor by my feet.

That was the day we lost our parents to an overdose of crack. That was the day that asshole came back to the apartment and discovered his _workers_ dead on the floor. He took it out on us, slapped us around and told us that it was our fault that they killed themselves. He called the police and simply left us alone with their bodies.

The authorities came and took us both away kicking and screaming for each other. I was afraid they were going to take him away from me. We were both sent to the hospital for nearly being starved to death. After, a couple of weeks in the hospital, we were sent to foster care.

The rest of our childhood was being thrown to foster home to foster home. We were never adopted, but thankfully, we were both together. When we both turned eighteen, we ran away from our last foster home and that is how we ended up on the streets.

Christian likes his freedom. He likes being able to live where he wanted, and do what he wanted. He is the type of person who didn't like being told he couldn't do something. He is the strongest person I know. We grew up together, and as we got older, we fell in love.

I love him. I don't know what I would do if I didn't have him by my side. I know I wouldn't have survived my childhood without him. I couldn't survive in a world where Christian Grey didn't exist.

He is my other half.

He is my soul mate.

He is the reason I have survived this long while being on the streets. He is my protector in a dangerous world where anything can happen.

My eyes start to droop while I try not to think back to that horrible time in our life. I snuggle up closer to his side, and quickly fall asleep to the comfort of a bed.

To the comfort of a man that I love more than anything.

* * *

 _ **AN: Christian and Ana are both 20.**_

 _ **Thank you for all the reviews and followers for the prologue. I had several PM's asking some questions, and I thought I would answer them again just in case if you are wondering.**_

 _ **There will be no rape or cheating. I have a pinterest set up for this story, just look under eminshall07.**_

 ** _Thanks again for reading. I will have the next chapter up soon, as well as ADP._**

 ** _Let me know what you think of the chapter._**


	3. Chapter 2

_**Ana**_

 _BANG!_

We startle awake when we hear a door being thrown open.

Christian jumps out of bed quickly and starts getting dressed. I hurry off the bed and get dressed just as quickly. Christian throws his hat on backwards and places his index finger on his lips to remind me to be quiet. I quickly nod and put on my shoes.

We get our coats on, and I place my green knitted hat on my head and bit my lip in anticipation.

Christian opens the door slowly and peaks out of the cracked door and listens. We suddenly hear two people start yelling and slurring there words.

"I didn't tell you to sleep with him did I?" they slur.

"Fuck you! It's not like I am getting anything at home!" someone yells.

I roll my eyes at their bickering. Suddenly we hear a slap and I am guessing someone hit the other. We hear more yelling and Christian looks over to me and mouths _window._

I look over my shoulder and I nod at him and quietly walk to the window and open it slowly, trying to not make any noise.

Christian walks over to me and points to a tree that is by the window. I quietly climb out of the window and into the tree. I look around me and see no one around. It's still pitch black outside so I am assuming it's still the middle of the night.

I climb down the tree and jump down onto the ground. I look up and see Christian closing the window quietly and hurrying down the tree. He jumps down when he gets closer to the ground and takes my hand and then we run down the street. We can still hear the people bickering in the house we just vacated while we run down the sidewalk.

When we get to the end of the street, we stop to catch our breath. Christian turns around and takes off his hat and smooths his wild hair while try to fix mine under my hat. He places his hat back on his head and smirks at me. I roll my eyes and kiss his lips.

"Let's go baby," he takes my hand and we continue to walk down the vacant street.

* * *

We walk for about an hour. We get to a bus stop and we both sit down on the bench and I curl my body close to Christian. It's still freezing outside, so I wrap my green jacket tighter around me while we wait for the bus.

"You cold baby?" he says with a frown.

"Yes. I hate when it's cold out," I say while shivering.

My teeth clash together at a fast pace. He puts his arms around me and rubs my arms to try to warm me up. I smile up at him and give him a kiss on the cheek.

He smiles down at me and moves my blonde hair behind my ears and covers them with my hat. My natural hair color is brown, but I wanted to do something different, so I dye it blonde whenever I get the chance to. He stares into my eyes. He gives me a guilty look. I frown and before I can ask why he is looking at me like that, the bus pulls up at the bus stop.

"Let's go baby," he kisses my head and pulls me up from the bench.

We get on the bus and we take a seat in the back. There is only a couple of people on the bus with us. An old lady, and a white man who looks to be in his mid-teens. He is listening to music while trying to write something on a little piece of paper.

Christian pulls me onto his lap while we ride the bus. I lean my head back and place my head on his shoulder. He kisses my neck and snuggles into me. We ride in silence for a couple of minutes until he raises his head and stares at me with the guilty look once more.

I raise my own head and stare into his soft gray eyes.

"What is it babe?" I frown.

He shakes his head and softly runs his knuckles down my jaw. I close my eyes and savor his touch. He never fails to make me feel safe and loved.

He takes a single finger and raises my chin as I open my eyes and look at him.

"You know I want the best for you. You know that don't you?" he asks suddenly.

I stare at him in confusion.

"Of course I do," I whisper.

"I would do anything for you," he whispers and runs his fingers down my face softly.

"Babe where is this coming from?" I sit up and frown.

He runs his hand through his long hair and sighs. He grabs me by the waist and places me back on his lap. I lean my head back on his shoulder again and stare at him while he gathers his thoughts.

"I just want you to have everything babe. I want to give you the world, and right now I am not doing that," he closes his eyes like he is in pain.

"Christian, yes you are. You are giving me you. I don't need anything else. All I need is you by my side," I say sincerely.

I grab his head and yank his forehead to mine. He opens his eyes and we stare at each other for a few minutes. He takes my head into his hands and kisses me sweetly. Our tongues dancing, causing me to quietly groan into his mouth. He pulls back and looks at me with lust.

I bite my lip and giggle when he tries to adjust himself while I am on his lap. He chuckles and kisses my forehead and we both lean back and sit there while the bus drives to several stops around the city.

* * *

After being on the bus for a little over an hour, I ask Christian where we are going.

"We are going to see if Elliot can give us his spare room for the rest of the night," he says.

We have our hands intertwined together. I am leaning on his chest and playing with one of the strings that is on his gray sweatshirt.

"Okay. We haven't seen Elliot in a while," I say.

Elliot is one of our friends that lived with us in our last faster home. He turned eighteen a couple of months before we did. He left the moment he got up that morning. We didn't see or hear from him again until we both ran away from the home when we turned eighteen. Christians' birthday is a couple of months before mine, so he stayed with me at the foster home and got a job at a fast food place. He saved up everything he had from working there and we used that after we ran away. He saved up a little over $1,000 and after a short while, that ran out.

Christian hated every minute of working there. Since, Christian is an independent person. He frequently butted heads with everyone that worked there. The day of my birthday, he simply walked out of the place and threw his uniform at the manager and cursed him off while he walked out. I always roll my eyes when I think about how shitty he is when working fast food.

We saw Elliot again, a couple of months ago. He got a job at the Chrysler plant a few months after he got out of foster care. He usually lets us stay there every once in a while. It would have been nice if we could move in there permanently, but he always has people staying in his extra room so they can help him with his rent. There are times when he doesn't have people over, and those are the days he lets us crash there for free.

The bus stops, and we get up and walk off the bus. The sun is just starting to rise in the distance. I yawn and wrap my jacket tighter around me. Christian takes me by the waist and we walk a couple of miles to Elliot's apartment building.

His apartments are pretty nice. It is a big four story brown brick building. There is a gate that wraps around the property. Thankfully it is always unlocked early in the mornings so we don't have to wait outside before someone comes to open it. There are a few black men who always hang around in the front of the building. They are standing there laughing and talking while smoking cigarettes. I hang my head and walk faster to catch up with Christian. He is holding my waist tightly and walking fast to the front door.

The guys who hang out in front are always trying to start trouble when we come here. They like to egg Christian on, and say hurtful things to us. They know we are homeless and they like to throw that in our face every time they see us.

We try to hurry to the front door but one of the guys spots us and gives us an evil smirk. He takes his cigarette out of his mouth and blows the smoke in my face when we walk pass him. Christian tenses and places me behind him and gets in his face.

"Watch it fucker," he hisses.

"What the fuck are you going to do about it mother fucker," he spits in Christians face.

They are both nose to nose and both seething with anger. His friends are standing behind him ready to intervene. I quickly grab ahold of his arm and start to drag him away. Christian never takes his eyes off of the guy.

"Yeah, that's right you pussy. Run away like a little bitch," they laugh and start to smoke again.

Christian starts to lunge for them but I pull him back and inside of the apartment building and shut the door before he can do anything.

"Christian stop. You are going to get yourself hurt," I beg.

He keeps staring at the door. His fists are balled up by his sides and his face is red. I take ahold of his head and force him to look at me.

"It's not worth it, just forget about it babe," I whisper. I kiss his lips and look up at him.

He blinks and closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. He nods and takes my hand and we walk up the stairs to the third floor.

We knock on Elliot's door and we wait. I lean up against the stairs while Christian continues to knock on his door. There is no answer. I sigh heavily and close my eyes. He's not here.

"Elliot, are you there man?" he says loudly while continues to knock.

"Babe, he's probably at work," I say.

Christian shakes his head in exasperation and continues to knock loudly on the door.

Suddenly the next door opens, and out walks a guy with tattoos on both of his arms. He is about to light a cigarette and before he can light it he spots us by the stairs.

"If you are looking for Elliot, he isn't here," he nods at the door.

Christian pushes me behind him again and glares at the guy. I roll my eyes at him.

"How do you know?" he hisses.

The guy looks up at him and raises his eyebrow in amusement. He exhales and points to the door with his other hand.

"He left town for a few days. We work at Chrysler together," he smiles and places the cigarette on his lips and leaves it there while he runs his hand through his blonde hair.

Christian just stands there and continues to glare at him. The guy puts his hands up in surrender and chuckles.

"No harm man. I am just trying to help ya out," he smirks.

He looks at me and takes his cigarette from his mouth and drops it on the floor and steps on it without taking his eyes off of me. I look at him from beneath my lashes and frown when he looks me up and down.

Christian growls and stands in front of me, blocking him from my view.

"Stop looking at her," he hisses.

He scoffs and pulls his wallet out of his back pocket and produces a $50 bill. He waves it in front of us and then tries to hand it to Christian.

"Here take this," he says.

"Excuse me?" he growls again.

"Your girl looks like she needs a good night sleep. Just take the money man. Go somewhere and get her something to eat," he sighs.

He walks forward and shoves the money into Christian's chest and walks around us and goes down the stairs.

"Wait. We don't need your money or your pity," he throws the money to the guy again and he catches it while he rolls his eyes.

"I'm not fucking pitying you bro. Look, I've been where you are alright. Your girl need something to eat and a roof over her head. Go get them for her," he walks over to me and gives me the money.

He places it in my hand and I stare at him dumbfounded. He winks at me and continues to walk down the stairs. Christian growls again and runs his hand through his hair. I shake my head and lean over the stair case and see him walking down the steps.

"Thank you," I yell down.

He looks up and gives me a salute and walks out of the front door. I smile and turn back to Christian and he is glaring at me.

"What? We need to eat," I smirk.

"We could have went to the shelter and ate," he counters.

"Well, I want McDonald's breakfast, and it's my birthday," I retort.

"Fine, McDonald's it is," he rolls his eyes and smirks.

I walk over to him and lean up on my tip toes and kiss him on the cheek. I turn around and skip to the stairs and walk down them. Christian chuckles and follows me out of the building. I breathe a sigh of relief when the assholes are nowhere to be found.

"Well, let's go eat babe," he smirks when we get out of the building. It's now light outside. Cars driving down the street and people are out walking around, probably on their way to work or school.

I smile at him as he puts his arm over my shoulder and I place my arm around his waist while we walk down the street to the nearby McDonald's.

* * *

 _ **AN: Thank you for all the reviews and followers so far. I am glad you are all interested in the story.**_

 ** _Q &A's: Ella did overdosed on purpose. Carla found her unresponsive on the floor and when Christian left his mother to go to Ana, Carla decided to end her life as well. _**

**_-The house they broke into were not Grace and Carrick's._**

 ** _-Will they meet there biological fathers? I don't know, but it's still early in the story so never say never._**

 ** _-Christian and Ana were both 5 when their mothers committed suicide. Yes, they did go to school while in foster care._**

 ** _-Will they always be poor? Like I said above, it's still early on into the story so anything can happen. I want to write something different, but since CG is, well himself, he will always naturally be born to do great things in his life even when it takes many obstacles to achieve what he was always meant to do._**

 ** _I will try to get the next chapter up sometime next week. I am in the process of writing the next chapter of ADP so I will have that up soon (if you read that one)._**

 ** _Review and let me know what you think. Thanks again for following. :D_**


	4. Chapter 3

_**ANA**_

We make it to the McDonald's twenty minutes later.

We walk through the doors and I immediately see a long line at the register. I twist my lips and continue to walk to the end of the line. Christian stands behind me and wraps his arms around my waist and his chin on top of my head. I am standing there figuring out what I want to eat, when the person in front of us turns his head around and looks at us in disgust.

I take my eyes off of the menu and look over at him. He looks me up and down with a repulse look. Christian must see him staring at me because he suddenly stiffens.

"What the fuck are you looking at?" he hisses.

The guy looks at Christian startled. His eyes widen and swiftly turns around and keeps his eyes forward. I giggle when I see Christian glaring at the back of the guy's head.

"Fucking prick," I hear Christian mumble under his breath.

I shake my head and chuckle and turn back to the menu.

I decide I want a Bacon, Egg and Cheese McGriddle meal. I haven't had McDonalds since we were at our foster home.

"Did you decide what you wanted birthday girl?" he whispers in my ear.

"I did," I smile.

The guy in front of us finishes ordering and he scurries away from the counter. I chuckle and head up to the counter.

The young girl who is working the cash register looks up and gasps rather loudly. I roll my eyes and I hear Christian huff.

"Welcome to McDonald's what can I get you?" she stutters and looks everywhere but at us.

I look down at our clothing and see our jeans have dirt on them, our jackets are ripped and dirty, and I am sure our appearances look like we just crawled out of the sewer.

We haven't had a shower in a week. The shelters have shower stalls but they are always full, and we always find people in there having sex. It sucks that we don't have the opportunity to shower daily like most people do, but we try the best we can.

"Yes, we would like the Bacon, Egg and Cheese McGriddle meal, and a Big Breakfast meal with two cokes," Christian orders.

"That would be $10.27 please," she says hesitantly.

I sigh at her tone of voice. I know it's because she thinks we can't afford our food.

Christian smirks and hands her the $50 bill. She takes it and gives us a dumbfounded look.

I bet she didn't think we would have money. Probably thought that we would steal the food and run out of the door.

She hurriedly takes the money as she blushes from Christians glare, and gives us our change and receipt.

"Your order will be out shortly," she stutters once more.

"Thank you," I say sweetly.

Christian takes my hand and leads me to the drink fountain and fills our cups with soda.

I smile and kiss him on the lips when he hands me my cup.

We walk over to a table and sit down and wait for our number to be called.

I drink all of my soda easily. Christian does the same. We haven't drank anything since yesterday morning while at the shelter.

"Do you want more baby?" he gestures to my cup.

"Yes please," I smile.

He gives me a kiss on the cheek and gets up and refills our drinks.

I watch him walk away and spot a group of girls who look like my age watching us from their table across from us.

I squirm in my seat when they all give me the same look of disgust. I pull my hat down farther down my face and lean back in the chair and look down at my fingers, trying not to listen in on what they are saying.

"Gross," I hear one of them say.

There not even trying to be quiet about what they are saying.

"I know. Have you ever heard of a shower?" they all laugh.

I close my eyes tightly, trying not to cry. I hate when people talk bad about me.

My eyes fly open when I hear them all gasp. I look up and see them staring at Christian while he sits down. He hands me my coke and I give him a small smile. He frowns but doesn't say anything.

I take a sip of my coke and hear them talking once again. They talk quietly this time.

"Look at him," one of purrs.

"I know. That man is fine,"

"Are they homeless or something?" one of them says.

"Look at what they are wearing, of course they are," I see her talking in the other girl's ear.

"Too bad, that man could be a model," she giggles quietly.

"I know right? He also needs to ditch that frumpy girl," she giggles.

Christian grinds his teeth and balls his hands into fists. I think he heard there conversation. They start to talk about me again and he whips his head around and glares at them. They stop talking and their eyes widen. They all look down at the table and continues to eat their food.

He turns to me and shakes his head. I give him a little shrug of my shoulder and take another sip of my coke.

Our number is called and he gets up and gets our order. While he is gone, the women all get up and throw their trash away and walk out of the door while looking at me in disgust once more.

There all dressed in nice, clean clothes. Beautiful purses hang from their shoulders. The blonde one looks at me up and down in judgement before she walks out of the door. She looks up and gives me a dirty look, turns around and flips her hair over her shoulder and struts out of the door with her head held high.

I close my eyes and try ignore their stares and insults.

Christian comes back and sets our food down on the table. He comes over and kisses my forehead softly.

"Ignore them baby, and let's try to have a good day today," he whispers in my ear.

I open my eyes and nod at him. He gives me a kiss on the lips and gives me my food. We scarf down all our food in five minutes. I moan at the last bite of my hash brown and take a gulp of my soda.

"Feel better?" he smirks.

"Very," I smirk back.

He chuckles and gets up and throws our trash away.

"I need the bathroom before we go," I say.

"Okay baby, I'll wait here for you,"

I nod and get up and head to the bathroom.

When I enter the bathroom, I see another women at the sink reapplying her lipstick.

 _Oh, great. Not another one._

I hurry to the stall before she has the chance to notice me. I don't want another judgment stare. There is just so much I can take in a day, especially when it's my birthday.

I do my business and I am about to walk out of the stall, but before I do I hear the women who was at the sink talk on what I am assuming is her phone.

"I am on my way. I need to go to the bathroom first but I need to wait until this disgusting ass girl gets out of the stall," she laughs.

I sigh in defeat. _Nope, the insults are still coming._

"I don't know…I need to wipe down the seat when she is done…Exactly. The girl might have diseases for all I know," she says.

A lone tear slips out of my eye and I quickly wipe it away. I take a deep breath and walk out of the stall.

The girl is waiting by the wall and still talking on her phone. I walk past her and she recoils from me give me a repulsed look. I look back at her and see her still staring at me. Staring at me in distaste.

In anger, I flip her off and she gasps and her eyes widen. I smirk and walk out of the bathroom with _my_ head held high. _Fucking bitch._

Christian is leaning against the wall of the men's bathroom waiting for me.

"Ready baby?"

"I'm ready," I smile.

We both walk out of the McDonald's hand in hand.

* * *

A little over an hour later, Christian leads me to motel. _Fontaine Motel._

I wait outside the office while Christian gets us a room for the day. We have had the opportunity to stay in a couple of motels throughout the last year. We remained in a motel for a few months after we got out of the foster home, and when we had the money from his fast food job.

We have stayed in shelters and on the street ever since.

Christian comes out of the office and waves a key in the air, smiling broadly. I smile and follow him up the stairs to the rooms. It is outdoor setup. We unlock the door to room 4C, and I follow him inside.

I sigh and throw myself on the queen size bed. I land on the bed and lay like a starfish. Christian chuckles as he takes off his hat and throws it on the dresser in front of me.

"Come on babe. Let's take a shower," he offers.

"That sounds so good right now," I moan.

He wiggles his eyebrows and leads me to the bathroom. We take off our clothes and when we are naked, he turns on the shower. I get inside of the shower and put my head under the torrent of water. I groan and enjoy the hot water on my skin. Christian smirks and comes behind me and nuzzles my neck.

He turns me around, and we both hold each other under the water. I put my head on his chest and sigh in content. He runs his hand through my hair and kisses my forehead. We stand under the water for a while, both holding each other in peaceful silence. We haven't had this much privacy while we were in the shower for a long time. I think we are both basking in that fact.

"Come on, let's get cleaned," he says after a while.

I nod, and he gets out the shower and hands me the shampoo and body wash that the motel provides. We both wash each other. I wash Christian's hair while I give him a passionate kiss. When we are both clean, Christian shuts off the water.

We both get out and dry off. After Christian helps me wipe my hair, he leads me to the bed. We are still naked.

He looks at me and softly pushes me on the bed. I close my eyes for a moment and wallow. I open my eyes and see him staring at me in lust. He crawls up my body, kissing me as the goes. I moan and run both my hands through his hair when he gets to my sex.

He suddenly flips me over, making me yelp. He pulls me up, so I am sitting up on my knees. He then slowly sinks into me from behind. We both moan as he slowly thrusts his hips upward. I throw my head back onto this shoulder as he cups both my breasts with his hands.

He takes one of his hands off of my breast and starts rubbing my clit with his fingers.

"Come for me baby," he pants in my ear.

I cum long and hard. He suddenly lays me on the bed, ass still in the air. He thrusts into me from behind hard and fast. He suddenly spanks me on my ass, causing me to cum again.

"Fuck baby," he moans loudly.

He quickly pulls out of me, and I feel his warm seed spill onto my back. He falls on top of me, both trying to catch our breath. When we are both breathing normally, he gets up and gets something to clean my back.

I give him an exhausted smile. He turns me around and holds me from behind as we both fall into a blissful sleep.

* * *

 _ **AN: Thank you for all of the reviews and following the story.**_

 _ **Q &A: **_

**_-They were always together while in foster care. I know that is probably not likely IRL, but I didn't want them to be separated._**

 ** _-I guest review asked why Christian didn't want her to be safe, and to give her the world and basically thinking he wanted better for her than living on the streets. Yes, he wouldn't want her to be living this way. Ana would follow him anywhere even though they live on the streets, she loves him. Plus, it's just a story._**

 ** _Let me know what you think, and thank you for reading._**

 ** _Pinterest is under my profile name; eminshall07_**

 ** _eminshall07/surviving-with-you/_**


	5. Chapter 4

_**Ana**_

I slowly open my eyes when I hear Christian's soft, beautiful voice singing softly in my ear.

" _Good morning to you, were all in our places, with bright smiling faces, and this is the waaaay, we start a new day,"_

I giggle at him. Christian always used to sing this song to me when we were kids.

His mother always used to sing that song to him first thing in the morning. After a while, his mother stopped singing the song to him since she would always still be passed out in the living room the night before. He then began to sing the song to me.

When we were growing up, we didn't have much when it came to toys and books. Our mothers only had a handful of toys for Christian and me.

Christian had three toy cars that he always used to play with. He also had one of that speak and spells. Whether, I had a cabbage patch kids, and a couple of old wooden alphabet blocks.

Other than that, we didn't have much to do during the day. Our mothers were always gone from the apartment with that asshole who abused us when we were younger, so we were left most of the time by ourselves.

I shake my head at the thoughts of that time. I don't want to go there again.

I look up at Christian, and he is laying on his side with this head resting on his bent arm and smiling softly at me.

"Thinking of old times?" he caresses my cheek.

"Yeah," I sigh.

He leans over and kisses me on the lips softly.

"It's over now. We should just let the past be past," his eyes darken.

"I know, I'm sorry," I give him a small smile.

"There is nothing to be sorry about babe," he sighs.

To distract him, I roll on top of him and bend down and kiss his scars on his chest. He moans and runs his hands through my hair. I turn my head to the right as the sun suddenly blinds me.

We were up all night fucking and making love. We rarely have the opportunity to sleep in the same bed, so we stayed up well into the evening and took advantage of being all alone.

The shelters that we stay in have single cots that are all set up in a big room, so there is no privacy. That doesn't stop some people from having sex, though. A couple of months ago, we basically had a front row seat to it. Christian and I pushed our cots together and slept as close as we could to one another. I woke up to lots of moaning and groaning coming from right next to us. I remember looking over still half asleep, and some guy riding an older woman on her cot. I gasped and shoved my head into Christian's shoulder. This woke him up and at first he was confused. As the moaning became louder, Christian suddenly growled at them to stop fucking. This caused some people to wake up, and for the night manager to come running into the room and to throw the couple out. I started giggling when the guy apparently didn't have time to pull up his pants, causing him to be thrown out with his dick still hanging out.

Christian looks down at me with a frown when he realizes that I have stopped kissing him.

"Are you okay?"

"Sorry. Just remembering that time when that shelter manager threw that guy out with his pants hanging down," I giggled.

"Why are you thinking about some other man's dick?" he snorts.

"I'm not. I just thought that we never have the opportunity to be alone like this," I murmur.

His eyes soften as he pulls me up and gives me a soft peck on the lips.

"I know baby. Let's not think about that right now okay?" he pleads.

I give him a small smile and bend down and kiss him.

He pulls me on top of him, and I lean down and take his cock in my hand and slowly sink down onto him causing us both to moan loudly. I place both my hands on his chest and start to ride him hard and fast. He meets me thrust for thrust. I throw my head back and moan loudly.

"Baby, God damn," he moans.

He looks down and watches his cock go in and out of me.

He starts to rub my clit roughly causing me to erupt into orgasm.

He thrusts into me two more times and throws his head back as he cums.

I fall on top of him and we both try to catch our breath. When our breathing slows, I begin to slide off of him, and I suddenly freeze when I feel his semen leak out of me. My eyes widen when I realize he didn't pull out.

"Fuck!" I yell.

Christian jumps a little when I suddenly leap off the bed. I run to the bathroom, and go to the bathroom.

"Ana, what's wrong?" he panics.

He runs into the bathroom after me. I go to the bathroom and I frantically wipe myself. When I am done, I hurry to the sink and turn on the faucet. I take some water into my hand and try to clean myself. Christian stands there in the doorway like a statue. I look up at him, and he is pale and staring at me in fear. My hands start to shake while I take some more water in my hand and try to wipe away the semen the best I can.

"Christian," I whimper.

He starts to panic and throws his hands in his hair and pulls at it while he looks wildly around the bathroom.

"Fuck! This cannot be happening" he chokes.

I frantically wipe myself again while tears are streaming down my face.

"Ana baby stop," he says frantically.

He pries my hands away from my vagina as I am rubbing myself raw at this point. I put my head in my hands and start to sob.

"Oh my god, Christian,"

He takes me into his arms, and I cry into his chest.

I cannot believe we didn't pull out. I cannot get pregnant. We can't have a baby right now. We don't even have a place to live. We can barely survive on our own. What the hell are we going to do? I start to hyperventilate.

"Baby, you have to calm down. Breathe baby, breathe,"

He rubs circles on my back while I try to breathe in and out. We are both shaking. Goosebumps appear on my skin as he starts to rock me back and forth. We sit there on the bathroom floor for what seems like hours. I have stopped crying, and Christian begins to softly sing into my ear. A song he used to sing to me after that asshole abused us.

 _Lullaby, and good night, in the skies stars are bright._

 _May the moon's silvery beams bring you sweet dreams._

 _Close your eyes now and rest, may these hours be blessed._

 _'Til the sky's bright with dawn, when you wake with a yawn._

A lone tear falls from my eye when he continues to sing the sweet lullaby softly into my ear.

 _Lullaby, and good night, you are mother's delight._

 _I'll protect you from harm, and you'll wake in my arms._

 _Sleepyhead, close your eyes, for I'm right beside you._

 _Guardian angels are near, so sleep without fear._

 _Lullaby, and good night, with roses bedight._

 _Lilies o'er head, lay thee down in thy bed._

He hums the rest of the song, as I squeeze him tighter. He finishes the song and pulls me back so he can look into my eyes. His eyes are still clouded with fear. My lips tremble and my eyes start to water. He leans his forehead to mine, and we stare at each other in defeat.

"What are we going to do?" I whisper.

"I don't know baby. I just don't know," he whispers back.

I whimper again as he tightens his arms that are around my waist. I nuzzle his neck as he continues to rock me back and forth on the bathroom floor.

* * *

 _ **AN: Thank you for the reviews for the last chapter. Keep them coming.**_

 _ **Song that Christian sang to Ana: "Brahms Lullaby" (Jewel version).**_

 _ **Thank you for reading and following this story.**_

 _ **Just FYI; The start of the angst has begun folks.**_


	6. Chapter 5

_**Ana**_

We have been sitting on the tile floor of the bathroom for over an hour now. I am still sitting on Christian lap, while he runs his hand soothingly through my hair.

My tears have gone, and all that remains left is that hopeless feeling in the pit of my stomach. It's not a sense that I have very often. Even though Christian and I are homeless, I still feel safe, cherished, and loved because I have him to guide me through our struggles. I trust him with my life. When he is with me, I do not feel hopeless. I do not feel alone or hollow, because I have the one person who cares about me the most in this dangerous world by my side.

Right now, Christian and I are free. We are living and surviving on our own, without anyone's help. We can go anywhere, do anything, and be anything we want. Up until this point, our life was simple. There are always going to be struggles. We are always going to have to find ways to survive. There are times where we are not going to have a roof over our heads, or food in our stomachs, or clothes that are warm and clean.

What we do have is each other. We love each other. The kind of love that many people in this world do not ever find in their lifetime. I am always grateful that I have found the person that I love so early on in my life. We grew up together. We have been through the same hardships. We have been through the same abuse, and the same violence that young children should never have to go through.

We have been through a lot together, and we have always come out stronger in the end. I know we can get through this. I know what can happen next. I know that we are in the high percentages of getting pregnant.

I close my eyes tightly at the thought of bringing a child into this world at this point in our lives. I know that a baby right now is impossible. We don't have a place to call home. We don't have jobs or money or for the basic necessities. We can't afford a baby, or give the child what it needs to survive.

Formula, clothes, diapers, wipes, blankets, car seat. All of those baby essentials are impossible for people like us. Christian and I don't even have extra clothes for the two of us, let alone a newborn baby.

A lone tear slips out of the corner of my eye at the thought of us having a baby.

"Stop Ana," he says firmly.

I sniffle as I lean my head back to look into his eyes. They are full of pain, much like my own.

"I'm sorry. I'm just scared Christian," I whisper.

"I'm scared too baby, but we don't know for sure if you are pregnant. Just because I came inside of you, doesn't mean you are going to get pregnant. I know it's extremely likely for it to happen, but I don't think we need to worry about it until we know for sure. Okay?" he pleads.

"Okay," I agree.

He gives me a sad smile and kisses me on the lips softly.

I suddenly jump when we hear banging on the front door.

"Let's go! Check out time was twenty minutes ago! Get out of my motel!" someone yells.

Christian sighs and places me on the floor and stands up.

"Get cleaned up baby. Let me tell him we will be out soon," he says.

I nod and get up and stretch. I sigh and go to the bathroom. I hear Christian raising his voice in the bedroom. He is arguing with the guy about paying extra for overtime we spent in the room. I put my head in my hands and groan. _We'll have no more money._

I hear more arguing and then I hear Christian telling him to keep the change and slams the front door. I get up from the toilet and walk into the room. Christian is pacing up and down the room, without his shirt on.

He runs his hand through his long hair and stops when he sees me staring at him.

"The asshole wanted more money. That left us with only five dollars left," he hisses.

I nod weakly and look down at the ground at my bare feet. I am still naked.

I hear Christian sigh and he walks over to me. He lifts my chin with his finger. I stare at him with a defeated expression. He closes his eyes and kisses my forehead.

"Let's get out of here, and get to the shelter," he murmurs.

I walk to the bed and see that he has laid out my clothes. We get dressed, and when we are finished, he takes my hand and leads me out of the motel room.

We make it to the bus stop and sit down next to an old couple that is waiting for the bus. Christian puts his arm around my waist and I rest my head against his chest. I look over at the couple and she is staring at us. Pity written all over her face. I look away quickly. I hate when people look at us like that. I hate people feeling sorry for us.

The bus pulls up and we get up and find a seat in the back. I sit down next to Christian and stare out of the window as Christian rests his head back and closes his eyes. I lean my head on the cold glass of the window and stare at the city of Detroit as we ride the bus to the homeless shelter.

* * *

We get to our destination forty-five minutes later. Christian takes my hand and we walk off the bus. We see a long line in front of the shelter that we frequently visit.

The shelter is huge, with a long winding ramp in front of the brown brick building. There are many people in front of us waiting to get inside of the shelter. Most of the people who stay here at this shelter are regulars. There are many couples like Christian and I, some are all alone and some are single parents with children, and some are families. I snuggle up at Christian's side when I see a couple of kids who couldn't be more than two years old in front of us. The father is holding a little girl, who is wrapped up in a wool blanket. Her little head is resting on her father's shoulder. She has her eyes closed and is snoring softly. The other child is a younger boy, who is holding onto his mother's hand.

Christian moves me in front of his body. He wraps both of his arms around me and rests his chin on top of my head. I hold onto his arms and rest my head on his shoulder.

We stand there for a couple of minutes, while we move forward every few seconds due to them letting people into the building. The boy that was holding is mothers hand is now staring at me. He looks up at me and gives me a shy smile. I reciprocate and give him a little wave.

He giggles and hides behind his mother's legs. I giggle at him, while Christian chuckles behind me. He pokes his head out from behind her legs and we spend a few moments playing peek-a-boo with each other. The father turns towards us and smiles at me lovingly. I bit my lip and give him a shy smile back.

He mouths ' _thank you_ ' at me and turns back around. The mother provides us with a warm smile and picks up the boy and they turn towards the door. They are next in line.

The couple goes inside and it's our turn to speak to the manager of the shelter. She is an older African American women who has short dark hair and kind eyes.

She smiles at us warmly when she sees us approaching the door.

"Christian, Ana, how are you?" she says sweetly.

"Hi Mrs. Shana. We're doing okay," I give her a hug.

She hugs me back tightly. I always love her hugs. Shana is an amazing women. She works hard, and is always giving back to the community. She is like a second mother to the people around here. I always look forward to seeing her when we come into the shelter when we have nowhere to else to go.

"Come in and get some food. We were fortunate enough to get some new donations of clothing. You two look like you can use some."

"Thank you Mrs. Shana," I choke back a sob.

She gives me a motherly kiss on my forehead and gives Christian a kiss on the cheek. He still has his touch issues. Christian and I suffered the same abuse when we were little, but for some reason I overcame my fear of contact. Christian is still having difficulties with others touching him. I can touch him freely, because he knows I would never hurt him.

We walk into the building and the first thing you notice is all of the cots around the large room. They have colorful blankets and pillows that cover the beds. There are lines of bunk beds on the far wall. Those are for families with small children. There are also lines of bunk beds in a separate room, those are for families who have infants and toddlers. There are more private, so the children can sleep more soundly. It's also to help the other people who sleep on the cots, so they can have some peace and quiet when they go to bed at night, without hearing the constant cry of infants when they get up at night to feed.

In the far corner, there is a door that leads to a big kitchen area. There are many long tables, so all of the people can eat throughout the day. There are individuals who volunteer in the kitchen. They help fix and serve meals to all the families and individuals who spend time in the shelter.

"Let's go get some clothes baby," he whispers in my ear.

I nod and we walk around all of the empty cots.

We enter the room where they keep the donated clothes. It's a medium size room where multiple boxes are lined up on the far wall. The clothes are labeled, including the sizes that are written on top of the boxes. I walk over to the box that is labeled _women's_ _size 4_ and look through the box. I find a pair of black worn out skinny jeans and a tan long-sleeved shirt with buttons at the neck. I like my converse, so I skip the shoes and head to the bathroom to change into the clothes.

I come out of the bathroom and see that Christian has also changed into some new clothes. He is wearing some black jeans and a plain white shirt. His long hair is slicked back, and out of his eyes. He found some new shoes, and is wearing black and white Adidas's high top sneakers.

He takes my hand and we head over to the cots. We set down our old clothes and leave them on our chosen cots for the night. We usually sleep on the back of the large room. Christian still has nightmares and even though it is typical to hear others dreams at night, Christian is still somewhat embarrassed when he wakes up screaming. Most of the people here are used to people's dreams so they don't say anything in the morning. Almost all of them know that Christian has nightmares that are nearly every night when we are here.

He takes my hand again as we follow the others to the kitchen to eat dinner. There is a long line, and we stand there waiting for our turn. There are numerous people here serving us, so it usually doesn't take long to get food. We get to the top of the line and get plates, knives and forks. We go down the line and hold out our plates so they can give us our portions of food. I smile at the older lady who gives me a large helping of mash potatoes.

"Thank you," I murmur.

"Your welcome sweetie," she smiles warmly at me.

She serves Christian with a wink and he rolls his eyes and smirks. We continue down the line, and when our plate is full, we go over to the tables and sit down.

"What do you want to drink baby?" he asks.

"Just water please," I say.

He nods and gets up. I pick up my fork and start to devour my food. Tonight there are mashed potatoes, corn or green beans. You get a choice of ham or turkey. I choose ham. Also, there are an assortment of dinner rolls and different deserts. I picked up a slice of cherry pie, and Christian wanted an apple pie.

"Hey," I hear a deep masculine voice coming from behind me.

I smile and turn my head to see the man who suddenly appears beside me.

"Hey you," I beam up at him.

He chuckles and sits down beside me with his plate of food.

I haven't seen him for a few weeks. I frown and see that he suddenly jumps and then tenses when we hear a loud bang coming from the kitchen.

I put my hand on his shoulder when I see him frantically search the kitchen, he is suddenly on high alert.

"Hey it's okay," I coo.

He turns his brown eyes towards me and give me a pained look.

I squeeze his hand and try to reassure him that it's okay.

"It's okay Jason."

* * *

 _ **AN: Thank you for all the reviews for the last chapter.**_

 _ **As I said in the beginning, this story is going to be hard to read. I know some of you are worried about the baby issue. I know no matter what I do, some readers are going to be upset of the direction of this story. I cant please everybody, so please bear with me and hopefully all of you will continue to read their journey. I will tell you that there will be many obstacles and struggles for our favorite couple in this story. It's not going to be a lighthearted story, and it will upset some of you. Just wanted to warn you all again beforehand, so I hope you stick with me.**_

 _ **Pinterest is updated. Ill have the next update here soon. Thanks for reading.**_


	7. Chapter 6

_**Ana**_

"It's okay Jason," I try to reassure him.

He stares at me impassively for a while before he nods stiffly and starts devouring his food. I frown and continue my with my own food.

"Taylor," Christian nods.

"Grey," he nods back.

Christian hands me my water and sits down beside me.

"Thank you," I say with a full mouth.

"Welcome baby," he smiles and starts on his mash potatoes.

"So Taylor, where have you been? We haven't seen you in a while," Christian frowns.

Jason stops eating and looks up at Christian. He thinks about the question for a second before he responds.

"I've been away. What about you two?"

He shoves his food into his mouth. I stop mid-bite and frown at him in confusion. _That's it?_

Wonder where he has been? He hasn't elaborated on where he has been for the last two weeks. We met Jason Taylor about a year ago. Christian and I were walking around Trumbull St/ Lincoln St. It's one of the most dangerous neighborhoods in all of Detroit. We were passing through to get to one of the nearby shelters for the night. Christian and I knew that the area was extremely dangerous, so we tried to move as fast as we could.

We walked through Lincoln Street Art Park. The park has a long wall that is littered with graffiti. Numerous homeless people tend to sleep there, and hang around the park on a regular basis. Christian and I were power walking through the park when we spotted Jason pushing a cart that was full of tin cans. He had on a dark wool coat and a dirty scarf around his neck. I remember we stopped for a second so Christian can fix his backpack that was on his shoulder. Jason looked over at us and pushed his cart over towards us. He stopped in front of me and stared right at me. He was massive. He looked former military, with his dark brown buzz cut. His deep brown eyes stared into mine curiously.

"Let's go, Ana," Christian hisses.

I whipped my head around and frowned at him in confusion.

He tugged me forward, but I halted.

"Christian it's okay. He hasn't done anything," I hiss back.

"We don't know him, Anastasia. Let's go," he says firmly.

I roll my eyes and walk forward. Christian pulling me as I look back at the mystery man, and he is staring at me with a small smile tugging at his lips.

That was the first time we saw Jason Taylor. We saw him around the various shelters throughout the year. When Christian and I found this safe haven, we saw Jason waiting in line. We got to talking, and he told us that he was former military; the Marines. He was honorably discharged from service about five years ago. He was diagnosed with PTSD six months after he was released. He told us that him and his wife; Gail moved to Detroit for her job shortly after leaving the military. She was a nurse at Detroit Medical Center.

He told us that she died two years ago, due to a drive by shooting. They were coming home from dinner when a car full of drug dealers shot Gail in the head, and she died instantly. They shot Jason, but the bullet only hit his shoulder. He was rushed to the hospital where he was told that his wife didn't make it that night. His PTSD was affected more severely due to the shooting that night.

He spent a couple of days in the hospital where he was later discharged. He told us that he didn't have a job when his wife died. She had the only income, due to the severity of his PTSD, he couldn't hold down a job.

They had little to no savings when she died, and he couldn't keep their house. The money ran out, and he was hit with hard times. The bank took his house, and car and Jason were left with nothing.

He has been living on the streets ever since.

I always shed a tear when I think about how his wife passed away. There are so many cruel things in this world. Nobody deserved to die the way she did. Gail was everything to Jason. You can tell he loved her. I know he is still having a hard time with her death. Sometimes we can hear him call out her name at night. I can always hear him crying and begging for her not to leave him. It's heartbreaking that he lost his wife in the cruelest way possible.

It makes me appreciate Christian more. It makes me hug him a little tighter at night. I always feel guilty that I have the man that I love by my side when he has no one. Whenever we see him, I always try to include him in our plans. He doesn't always let his feelings show. He is always impassive with us. He built up walls to protect himself, and he is always hesitant to let anyone in again. Even though he has his walls built up, I can always tell I hold a special place in his heart. His eyes always soften just a little when I speak to him.

Jason is like an uncle to Christian and I. He is always protecting us even when he doesn't realize he is doing it.

"Anastasia and I have been alright," Christian brings me out of my thoughts.

He nods and finished his food. I push my empty plate to the side and watch Christian shove the rest of his food into his mouth. Christian has always had a hearty appetite. I have as well. When you don't have food most days, it's inevitable to eat all of the food on your plate.

He pushes his plate away and takes a big gulp of water. Jason stands up and takes his plate and walks off without a word or a backwards glance. I sigh and shake my head.

"He'll be alright baby," he rubs my back.

"I know, but I just feel terrible for him," I murmur.

"I know me too baby. He will be alright. It just takes time."

He places his arm on my shoulder, and I lean on him. He kisses my hair softly. We sit there for a little while longer. I sigh and sit up. I need to talk to Shana about what happened. I need to see if there is anything she can do.

"I need to speak with Shana, Christian," I murmur.

I twist my fingers that are sitting in my lap.

He sighs and nods. He kisses my forehead.

"I'll be with Jason. Come find me when you are finished talking," he nods to Jason.

I nod, and he kisses me once more. He gets up and walks over to Jason who is looking out of the window with this hands behind his back, and his feet shoulder width apart. Christian stands next to him and shoves his hands in his pockets as they both stare out of the window silently.

A small smile tugs at my lips. I get up and throw our trash away at the trashcans that are lined up on the wall.

I maneuver around the various people who are getting ready for bed or getting comfortable on their cots for the night. I come to the closed door and knock and wait.

"Come in," she says sweetly.

I open the door, and she is sitting behind her test writing something down on a piece of paper.

"Ana, is everything okay dear?" she says concerned.

"Yeah. Can I come in and talk to you real quick?" I bit my lip.

"Of course," she says.

I close the door and sit in one of the seats that are placed in front of her desk.

"What's going on?"

I sit there and stare at my knotted fingers. I bit my lip and think of a way to bring up the potential pregnancy.

She sits there patiently. Waiting for me to start talking. I take a deep breath and look up.

"I was wondering if the shelter had any morning after pills still available," I murmur.

Her eyebrows shoot up and stare at me in shock.

"Let me look in the system honey," she says after a few seconds.

She starts her computer and pushes a few keys. After a minute or two, she sighs deeply. I stop breathing. She looks over to me and gives me look of sympathy. I close my eyes and try not to break down.

"I'm sorry sweetie, but the shelter just ran out a few days ago. You know that pill is extremely popular around here. We put in a new order yesterday, and it seems the orders are backed up. I'm afraid we won't get any for another week or so," she explains softly.

"Okay," I choke back a sob.

"When did the unprotected intercourse happen?" she asks.

"This morning," I whisper embarrassed.

"Oh, honey I'm sorry."

She gets up and walks over to me and gives me a motherly hug. I wrap my arms around her and cry silently into her shoulder.

"It will be alright honey," she whispers in my ear.

I nod and continue to cry while she rocks me back and forth. _What are we going to do?_

I stop crying a couple of minutes later. I pull back and wipe my face with a tissue that she hands me. She helps me wipe my nose, and I giggle slightly at her motherly touch. _I miss my mom. I wish she was here to comfort me, and tell me everything is going to be alright._

"Honey, if it happens then we will be here to help you. I want you to start taking care of yourself from now on. Just in case. Alright?" she says softly.

"Okay," I agree.

"Okay." She gets up and walks over to her desk and sits down.

"I want you to go out and try to get some sleep. Try not to worry about it, and just take care of yourself. I want you and Christian to be at the shelter every day. I hate to see you guys out there, especially when it's starting to get cold out there," she says.

"I know Mrs. Shana. Well, try our best," I assure her.

"Good, go out and get some sleep. I'll see you tomorrow," she nods.

I give her a grateful smile and get up and close the door. I lean back and take a deep breath. I knew it was a long shot about the pill. The women here get prescribed the pill daily, and usually it is sold out unless you have the means of driving over to the Planned Parenthood that is over 35 miles away from the shelters. I sigh and walk into the large room and look for Christian and Jason.

I walk into the kitchen area since I don't see them by our chosen cots. I look over at the windows and see that they haven't even moved from their spot by the window. I see Christians mouth moving and Jason nod now and then so I know they are in the middle of a conversation.

I don't want to interrupt them, so I go over and sit down at an empty table and wait for them to finish talking. I lean over the table and cross my arms and place my head on my folded arms. I watch the various people still eating and talking amongst each other. My eyes start to feel heavy. It's been a long, exhausting day.

Just when I am about to close my eyes fully I feel someone sit down next to me. I sit up and rub my tired eyes. I look over at the person who just sat down and spot the boy that I played peek-a-boo outside while we were waiting to come inside of the shelter.

"Hi," he says shyly.

"Hi there," I smile.

"You tired?" he asks.

I nod and smile at him. He nods back and looks down at the table. I see that he is a beautiful little boy. He looks just over two years old. He has beautiful dark brown hair and green eyes. He seems a little underweight, but that is normal for so many children that are without homes, and without proper nutrition.

"Where is your parents, sweetie?" I frown.

"In da big room," he says.

I nod, and we sit there in silence. I twist my fingers while he looks at the various people in the kitchen area.

"LIAM!" someone yells suddenly.

I jump as well as most of the people in the kitchen when we hear someone yell out. I look up and see his mother frantically look around the room. I wave her over, and when she sees her son sitting next to me she places her hand over her heart, and I see her physically relax. She runs over to us.

"Oh, thank God. Liam, you cannot just run off like that," she scolds him.

The little guy looks down ashamed. I ruffle his hair to try to cheer him up. His mother sits down next to me and brings him into her lap and kisses his forehead.

"Thank you for keeping an eye on him. He likes to run around without telling anyone," she shakes her head.

"It's alright," I smile.

She sighs and kisses his head once more. The boy snuggles into her arms. I smile at the pair beside me.

"I didn't get your name?" she asks.

"Oh, sorry. I'm Anastasia, but everyone calls me Ana," I offer her my hand.

She gives me a beaming smile and shakes my hand enthusiastically.

"I'm Mia. Mia Kavanagh."

* * *

 _ **AN: Thank you for the reviews/followers/favorites**_

 _ **Thank you for all the kind words, and for all of you who is sticking with me. I appreciate having all of your support.**_

 ** _Pinterest is updated. Please review and let me know your thoughts on the chapter._**


	8. Chapter 7

_**Ana**_

"I didn't get your name?" she asks.

"Oh, sorry. I'm Anastasia, but everyone calls me Ana," I offer her my hand.

She gives me a beaming smile and shakes my hand enthusiastically.

"I'm Mia. Mia Kavanagh."

"Nice to meet you," I smile at her enthusiasm.

"So how old is your son?" I point to the little guy.

"He's two and a half," she ruffles his hair.

"He's a cutie," I smile.

"Thanks. Do you have any kids?" she asks.

I tense for a second. I really don't want to talk about this. I don't even want to worry about it now. I just want to forget it ever happened and go on with my life. But, I know that I can't forget about it. I know there is a high chance that it will happen, but I don't want to worry myself to death over something that could very well not happen.

"No," I give her a tight smile.

"You look like you have something on your mind. Do you want to talk about it? I'm a great listener," she asks suddenly.

For a second I hesitate. Should I tell her what is going on? I don't even know her. Should I bring up what happened? She does have kids, and she does look like she is in the same situation as we are in, so it wouldn't be a bad thing to get some advice.

I bite my lip and look down at my knotted fingers that are placed on the table in front of me.

"Um…I…," I take a deep breath.

I look up at her, and she gives me an encouraging smile that causes me to relax.

"How old were you when you got pregnant?" I blurt out.

She looks at me funny at first, but her face transforms into a sad expression. She looks like she doesn't want to say anything but after a few beats, she answers my question anyway.

"I got pregnant at 16," she murmurs.

She looks down at her son, who is now sleeping on her shoulder. She smiles and runs her fingers through his hair and kisses his cheek. I smile at the cute mother and son moment.

She looks up at me and is now smiling. Her eyes light up when she talks about her son.

"My husband and I found out we were pregnant a few weeks after I turned sixteen. Ethan, my husband, comes from a wealthy family, and me…well…I came from the opposite," she chuckles sadly.

I sit there quietly and listen. She gives me a sad smile and then continues.

"My mother was a drug addict. She was never home, and I didn't really know my father. He left a few months after I was born. I met Ethan at school. He moved from Seattle to Detroit because their parents decided to move their business here. Don't ask me why. I could never understand why anyone would want to run their successful business from Detroit," she shakes her head.

I sit there flabbergasted because her husband's parents moved from Washington to Detroit, and the other half is because she is openly talking to me about her past, with a complete stranger no less.

"Anyway, their parents hated the fact that their son was dating me. A nobody with a druggy for a mother, and that I didn't come from money. They forbid him from seeing me, but Ethan ignored them and we dated in secret," she says.

I nod and continue to listen.

"When we got pregnant, I told my mom immediately. My mother, of course, yelled at me for being a slut and an idiot for getting myself pregnant. She basically kicked me out of the house. I had nowhere to go so I walked to Ethan's house, and when I knocked on his front door, his sister answered the door," she rolled her eyes.

"His sister Kate is a royal bitch. She always hated me, and she always let me know it too. She would always spew hurtful things about me around school, and even spread a rumor about me that I had STD's," she hisses.

My mouth drops open at that. _What kind of person would spread those types of rumors? What the hell is wrong with his sister?_

"I told her I was looking for Ethan and that I needed to speak to him right away. She said that I was not welcomed there and that Ethan was breaking up with me and that he sent her to tell me that he was breaking up with me," she explains.

I scoff, and she nods in agreement. _Fucking bitch._

"Anyway, I told her that she was lying, and I told her that Ethan loved me and he would never hurt me like that, and she laughed in my face and told me to get off their property. I was about to lunge at her when I saw that Ethan had pulled up into the driveway," she says.

I shift in my seat and continue to listen.

"We both turned towards him, and he saw that I was upset and that something was wrong, so he ran over to me and brought me into his arms. I said I needed to speak to him and that it couldn't wait. His sister started yelling at us, and then his parents came out of the house. To make a long story short, I blurted out that I was pregnant. They got pissed off, started screaming at me about how I needed to get a DNA test, and that the baby wasn't his. They told him to basically choose, a slut and her child or his family," she scoffs.

I shake my head at their audacity. _What kind of family does that?_

"Of course, he picked me over his family. So when he said that he wanted to be with me and that he wanted to take responsibility for his child, they were hurt and angry. They basically told him that they were not going to support him or the baby. They also said that if that's what he wanted then they were going to disown him," She whispers the last part.

I stare at her is shock.

A tear slips out of her eye, and she hurriedly wipes it away. I put my hand on her shoulder and give it a soft squeeze, letting her know that I was here for her. She gives me a sad smile in return.

"Anyway, that is how we ended up here. They threw him out, took away his car, and told him to have a nice life. We have been on the street ever since," she murmurs.

"God, Mia. I am so sorry that happened to you," I murmur.

She shrugs and gives me a tight smile.

"It is what it is. I mean, it sucks that our parents disowned us, but we have each other, and that is all that matters," she beams.

I smile back and bump her shoulder with mine. I can understand that. I have Christian, and that is what is important.

"You have another little one?" I ask.

I remember seeing a little girl with them earlier. I assume that the man holding her was her husband, Ethan.

"Yes, a girl named Lola. She just turned one a month ago," she nods and smiles.

"There beautiful," I say.

"Thank you," she beams.

She asks me what my story was, and I go ahead and tell her how we ended up on the streets. She told me a lot about herself, so I thought it was only fair that I tell her mine. I try not to go into too much detail about how our mothers died thought. I don't want her to feel sorry for me.

"That guy that was with you…is he your boyfriend?" she blushes.

I chuckle at her. Christian gets that reaction all the time.

"Yes, that is my boyfriend. We grew up together," I smile.

I tell her all about our relationship. I don't tell her about our impending news; I decided not to worry about something that hasn't even happened yet.

She tells me that she and Ethan got married about a year ago. She explained that the shelter helped her and Ethan get married. Apparently, Mrs. Shana gave them the money for the marriage certificate and her and her husband were the witnesses at their wedding. This doesn't surprise me. I know Mrs. Shana is a wonderful person; she goes out of her way to help the people around here on whatever they need.

We have been talking for over an hour. We are laughing and enjoying each other's company. It's nice to have someone my age that I can talk to. It's nice having someone there who knows what you are going through.

About five minutes later, I see a man walk up to our table holding a brown-haired little girl. It's her husband; Ethan.

"There you are. I was wondering where you two went," he frowns.

"Sorry babe. Liam ran off, and I found him talking with my new friend," she looks over at me and beams.

Her husband Ethan looks over at me, and he gives me a tight smile.

"Well, I'm glad you found a new friend," he sits down.

"Me too. This is Ana. Ana, this is my husband Ethan," she introduces us.

I hold out my hand for him to shake, and he adjusts his daughter that is resting on his shoulder so he can shake my hand, which he does after a beat. His hand is clammy when we shake, and I notice a light dusting of pink on his cheeks. I bit my lip and let go of his hand. He sees and looks at my mouth for a second and then looks away quickly.

I stare at him with a frown. _What is that all about?_

He is looking out of the window, deep in thought while Mia starts talking about their plans for tomorrow.

I try to pay attention to her, but I am distracted because I can't stop thinking about her husband's weird behavior. He stares at me like he has seen me somewhere before. I frown because I have never seen him before. I look over at him carefully. He is tall and muscular, with unkempt brownish blonde hair, and deep green eyes. He has a small beard that is surprisingly neat.

He still stares out of the window with a deep frown. _What is he thinking?_

"Baby?" I suddenly jump when Christian appears beside me.

"Christian," I smile up at him.

He stares in confusion at Mia and Ethan.

"You must be Christian?" Mia asks.

"Yes?" he frowns.

"Hi, I'm Mia, and this is my husband Ethan," she says shyly.

She holds her hand out, and he looks over at me in confusion while he shakes her hand.

"Hello," his expression is blank.

He sits down beside me and places his arm around my shoulders.

I look over at Ethan, and he is staring at Christian strangely. I frown at his expression. _What is his problem?_

Christian notices and glares at him. Ethan quickly looks away and gets up.

"Come on Mia. Let's get the kids to bed," he awkwardly says.

"Okay. Will I see you tomorrow?" she asks hopefully.

"Sure, we will be here," I smile.

"Awesome. It was good to talk to you. Well see you in the morning," she beams.

I agree, and I get up and give her a hug, and then they walk out of the kitchen.

I sit back down, and Christian immediately speaks.

"Who the hell were those people?" he asks.

"They were the couple that was in line in front of us earlier. Her son came in here and sat down to talk to me, and Mia came in to see where her son went. We just got to talking while you were with Jason and she introduced me to her husband," I shrug.

"Why the hell was her _husband_ staring at you like that?" he hisses.

"Like what?" I frown.

"Like he wanted to get into your panties," he scoffs.

I scrunch up my nose at the thought.

"Christian, come on, he does not," I roll my eyes.

"Don't roll your eyes at me Ana. I don't like that guy, and I want you to stay away from him," he says firmly.

"Oh, come on Christian. Don't be ridiculous. The guy probably just recognizes me from somewhere. He hasn't done anything wrong," I shake my head.

"I don't like it," he glares at me.

"Well get over it! I like her; she is nice. So, if you have a problem with her husband, then that is your problem, not mine," I scoff.

I roll my eyes again and get up and walk off into the big room and head for our cots at the back of the room.

I take off my shoes and get comfortable on my cot. I get under the covers and spot Christian heading over to me. He runs his hand through his hair and sits down on his bed for the night.

"I'm sorry baby. I'll let it go, for now," he looks contrite.

"Apology accepted," I nod.

He chuckles and gives me a kiss on the cheek. He gets up and pushes his cot over to mine. He takes off is shoes and lays down. Everyone gets into bed and after laying there for about twenty minutes, they turn off the lights.

I look over at the far wall where they have a huge clock and see that it is just after 10 pm.

Christian takes my hand and gives it a soft squeeze. He places our conjoined hands in between us as he leans over and kisses me softly on the lips.

"Goodnight baby," he whispers.

"Goodnight," I whisper back.

"Love you."

"I love you too."

I smile into the darkness and quickly fall asleep.

* * *

 _ **AN: Here is the next chapter.**_

 _ **Thank you for all the feedback so far. I'm glad everyone is liking it and sticking with me.**_

 _ **If you read my other story, A Different Path to Fifty, I will be working on the next chapter soon.**_

 ** _I put up a picture of what I imagined what Ethan would look like in this story on my pinterest board._**

 ** _Also, don't worry, there will be No Cheating in this story._**

 ** _Thanks for reading/reviewing and following. :D_**


	9. Chapter 8

_**AN: Warning: This chapter contains talks and actions of the sensitive topic of abortion. Please read with caution or skip this chapter if necessary.**_

* * *

 _ **Ana**_

 _I open my eyes to the sound of a baby crying. The first thing I notice when I wake up is Christian sitting right next to me on a mattress, holding a crying baby._

 _I sit straight up as Christian whips his head over to me. He stares at me in a blind panic._

" _Baby, he won't stop crying," he panics._

" _What?" I frown. Why does he have a baby in his arms? What is going on?_

" _He's hungry. Baby, I don't know what we are going to do. We don't have any money to feed him," he cries._

 _My eyes widen, and I shoot up to my feet and look over to see a tiny infant wrapped up in a ratty blue blanket. He is crying hysterically. His little face is bright red, and he is squirming in his arms._

 _He tries to rock him back and forth, but this causes the baby to cry harder. Tiny tears are running down his face as he tries to shove his little fist into his mouth._

" _What is going on? Whose baby is that?" I demand._

 _He looks over at me with a mixture of surprise and hurt._

" _What are you talking about? Ana, this is our baby and he is hungry," he shouts._

 _My hands fly to my hair, and I shake my head back and forth._

 _Our baby? What?_

 _I look around us in a panic and see that we are in an abandoned house. It looks like we are in a living room. The room is a disaster. The walls have dirty pink wallpaper that is hanging off of it as well as the ceiling. The black concrete floor is scattered with various pieces of torn sofa cushion materials, and the purple couch is sitting by a wall. I look and see that we are sitting on a dirty mattress that is placed in front of the grimy window._

" _Where the hell are we?"_

" _Ana, what the hell are you talking about? We don't have time for this! We need to get him some food. He won't stop crying!" he shouts again._

" _That is not my baby! I don't know what is going on!" I shout back._

 _He shoves the baby into my arms, and I look at him dumbfounded._

" _Stay here. I need to find him some food. Your milk dried up two days ago," he says._

 _He stomps away, and I panic once again._

" _You can't just leave me here! Christian wait!" I yell._

 _He slams the front door shut and the baby's cries become louder._

 _Tears are streaming down my face as I try to rock him back and forth._

" _I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," I cry._

 _I look around the abandoned room and see the reality of our situation._

 _I failed our baby. I failed as a mother. I can't even take care of my own child. I can't even afford to feed my baby._

 _I weep as I cradle my baby to my chest. I sit down on the dirty mattress and lean my head back as I cry and continue to listen to the devastating cries of my starving infant son._

"Ana! Ana wake up!"

My eyes fly open and see Christian leaning over me with a concerned look on his face.

"Baby it's okay. You were dreaming," he coos.

He runs his hand through my hair as I throw my arm over my eyes and try to calm down. My throat is sore from apparently screaming in my sleep. My clothes are drenched in sweat, and my hair is sticking to my face.

Tears are running down my face as I lay there and remember the dream that felt so real.

Christian continues to run his hand soothingly through my hair. He softly hums into my ear.

It has been three weeks since we had unprotected sex. Three weeks of trying not to worry. We have been coming to the shelter ever since. I promised Mrs. Shana that we would take care of ourselves, and we have been trying to keep that promise.

My lips quiver when I think about our situation. My period was due yesterday.

It never came.

I am usually regular, and I am _never_ late. I always start my period on day 28. This month is different.

I now firmly believe that my horrible dream will become reality.

It was a relief that I started to have light spotting and cramping a few days ago, but that didn't last. The next day…nothing.

Mrs. Shana went ahead and bought some pregnancy tests for me to take when I was ready. I have been spending more time with her these last few weeks. I told her my fears about becoming a mother. She never judges me or looks at me with pity; she just lets me vent and most of all she listens.

Mia has been a godsend as well. She has two kids and is also without a home, so she knows how difficult it is to have a family in our situation. We have stayed up most nights just talking about anything and everything. I even help watch her kids when she and Ethan want some alone time.

Ethan has also been helpful. In the beginning, it was awkward to be around him. He kept staring at me with a light blush on his face. He kept looking at me like he remembered me from somewhere. Christian had enough of his behavior a week ago, and he no-so-nicely demanded what his problem was.

I still awkwardly chuckle when I think about why he was acting the way he was acting.

It was all because he saw Christian and I having raunchy sex in an alleyway about six months ago.

Christian and I were almost naked one Friday night. I had my shirt opened and my bare breast hanging out of my bra, and Christian was roughly thrusting in and out of me from behind. My back was to his front as he was leaning on a brick wall. I guess Ethan was coming out of a convenient store due to him buying some diapers for one of his kids, and he walked passed the alleyway. He said he saw us quite clearly since it wasn't that dark out yet. He froze on the spot because he heard our loud moans.

That is why he was always staring at me funny. He was embarrassed because he knew that was me getting thoroughly fucked in an alleyway. It still embarrasses me when we see each other, but it's slowly getting to the point where we can both look at each other without blushing.

"Baby, it's going to be alright," he whispers.

I take my arm away from my face and stare into his gray eyes.

"We're going to have a baby Christian," I murmur sadly.

"We don't know for sure baby," he shakes his head.

"I know. I feel it, Christian," I murmur.

He sighs and nods weakly.

"Let's go find out, and get it over with," he suggests.

I nod and get up off my cot. Some people are standing around chatting with each other, and some are getting ready for breakfast. Kids running around the various cots. Laughing without a care in the world.

We walk hand in hand to the restrooms. I take a deep breath and follow him inside of the family bathroom. Christian locks the door, and I stare at him in fear.

"Here," he murmurs.

He hands me the test. I place it on the counter and undo my pants. I sit on the toilet and unwrap the pregnancy test. I go to the bathroom and put the blue cap back onto the test and finish up.

Christian is sitting on the counter with his head in his hands. I flush the toilet and get up to wash my hands. He jumps off the counter and lets me use the sink.

"How long?" I ask while I dry my hands.

"Three minutes," he murmurs.

I nod and sit on the closed toilet seat. He sits back on the far wall and leans his head back and closes his eyes. We sit there in silence for well over three minutes.

"Okay," I blurt out.

He nods and sits up straight. I stand up shakily and head towards the test.

I close my eyes and take a deep breath. Christian comes to stand behind me and wraps his arms around me tightly. He sets his chin on my shoulder.

"Ready?" he says cautiously.

"Yes," I whisper.

I open my eyes slowly and look down and see my worst fears come alive. My hand flies to my mouth, and I gasp loudly.

Two bright red lines appear on the test display.

I sob into my hands as Christian pulls me into his chest and rocks me back and forth.

"Shhhh," he murmurs into my ear soothingly.

I shake my head against his chest and continue to cry.

 _We're pregnant._

"What are we going to do?" I whimper.

"I don't know baby. I don't know," he whispers.

We both sink to the floor, and we hold each other tightly.

We're pregnant. We're having a baby while we don't even have a place to call home.

This is supposed to be a happy time for couples isn't it? They are expected to have a job, a place to live. They are meant to have stability in their life. They are expected to get married and then start a family.

Having a baby is a happy time in a couple's life. To bring a healthy, happy baby into the world. To love and to nurture them, to take care of them, and to make sure that nothing bad happens to them.

We as a loving couple are not able to fulfill those needs for another human being, and that is what scares the shit out of me.

There is too much uncertainty. Too much that can go wrong with having a child while being homeless. I don't want to bring a child into this world while we are living like this.

I don't want my kid to suffer like me, and Christian has experienced all our lives. I want to do the right thing. I want to give the life that my child deserves, but right now; we cannot provide them with that.

I stop crying as the reality hits me full force.

I know what I need to do. I look up at Christian and stare at him blankly. I know we can read each other very well. We both see the pain in each other's eyes. We both understand what we need to do.

The right decision for us.

* * *

"Anastasia Steele?"

The receptionist calls my name. I stand up, and Christian holds my hand tightly into his as we both follow the receptionist to the back of the clinic.

"Would you mind laying on the table here and remove your jeans and panties," she smiles.

I nod and do what she says. She rolls the ultrasound machine towards us and starts to set it up. Christian sits down beside me and continues to hold my hand. He leans down and kisses my head softly. I give him a weak smile.

"This will be a little warm and uncomfortable, but it won't hurt," she says reassuringly.

She gets the probe ready and tells me to open my legs. She inserts the probe gently, making me wince.

"Okay, let's see," she says.

We both look at the grainy screen. She stops moving the probe, and points to a tiny blimp on the screen.

"Well, this is your baby. I would say you are only four weeks pregnant. Very early, so the procedure won't be a problem," she tightly smiles at me.

"Okay," I choke back a sob.

"I'll let the doctor know, and he will be right with you honey," she says sympathetically.

I nod, and she cleans everything up and leaves the room. I sit up and pull down my shirt and put my jeans on. We sit in silence; we both do not know what to say. The doctor comes into the room after he softly knocks.

"Hello, Miss Steele. I'm Doctor Hammond," he introduces himself.

We both shake his hand, and he sits in front of us with a clipboard and a pen in front of him.

"So, it looks like we did confirm a pregnancy by an internal ultrasound. You are approximately four weeks and one-day gestation. You are requesting an aspiration abortion today is that correct?" he reads from the clipboard.

He looks at me sympathetically.

I nod weakly and Christian squeezes my hand. I squeeze back.

"Okay. Now, before we perform the procedure, I have some questions I want to ask…they are sensitive in nature, so if you ever feel uncomfortable then let me know. Okay?" he says softly.

I nod. He asks me all sorts of questions.

 _When was the last time you had intercourse?_

 _Do you know who the father is?_

 _Do you know when conception happened?_

 _Did you ever feel pressured?_

 _How many sexual partners have you had in the past?_

Christian tenses at some of them. I squirm at some of them myself.

When the doctor is done asking questions, he tells me to lay on the bed once again so we can start the procedure.

I do as he says and another nurse comes into the room. She smiles at me warmly, and I try to reciprocate.

I can't. I'm about to kill my baby. I can't smile right now. I whimper as they tell me to take my jeans back off and open my legs. They get everything ready and set up.

Christian holds my hand so tight into his that I feel like he is going to break it off, but I welcome the pain. I deserve the pain for doing this to my child. A lone tear slips out of the corner of my eye when they tell me that they are ready to begin.

"Are you ready Miss Steele?" the doctor asks.

"Yes," I whimper. My lips quiver, and I stare up at the white ceiling.

"It's okay baby," he whispers into my ear.

I nod, and tears start to roll down my cheeks.

"Okay, now you are going to feel a little bit of pressure, so just try to stay still. If you start to feel uncomfortable then let me know," he murmurs.

"Okay," I choke.

I close my eyes and take a deep breath. I lay there trying to think of something else. I try to keep my mind occupied with other things, but it's not working.

Nothing is working. I can feel them start to push things inside of me, causing me to panic.

It's then I start to think about my dream. I reflect on our baby. I start imagining what he or she would look like. I see my son having Christian's copper hair and gray eyes. I see my daughter having my powder blue eyes and brown hair. An exact replica of ourselves.

I start to imagine my child happy and laughing in a meadow where nothing can hurt them. I see the inside of our future and see our perfect child smiling lovingly at us. I see my child. Our child.

A child with Christian.

They start to say that they are going to start, but before I can stop myself, I yell out.

"I can't."

* * *

 _ **AN: Thank you for all of the kind words and the feedback of this story so far.**_

 _ **I know the topic of abortion is a sensitive one. I do not have any experience on this sensitive topic so please excuse any mistakes.**_

 _ **I am pro-choice and I do agree that a women has the right over her own body. I know this chapter was probably hard to read, it was hard to write, but I wanted to write some realistic topics that so many women or young girls go through all around the world. It's not easy, and I hope you all continue to read their journey and whatever is to come for our favorite couple.**_

 ** _Please, no rude or inappropriate comments, and if I see any guest reviews that are like this, I will simply delete them. If this offends you, do not read it. Simply leave, and read something else._**

 _ **Thank you again for sticking with me. I appreciate all of you reading the story and reviewing. XOX**_


	10. Chapter 9

_**AN: Warning: This chapter as well contains talk of the sensitive topic of abortion. Please read with caution.**_

* * *

 _ **Ana**_

" _I can't."_

"Miss. Steele?" The doctor looks up at me confused.

I cover my eyes with my trembling hand. Tears are streaming down my face as I cry.

"Baby?"

Christian tries to peel my hand away from my face, but I shake my head and continue to cry.

"Miss. Steele, do you want me to stop the whole procedure?" The doctor asks softly.

I nod frantically and continue to cry.

"I can't do this. I can't," I choke.

"Okay, we will stop. Tanya, let's give them a minute. We will be outside Miss. Steele. Please, take your time," he explains.

I nod weakly and I hear both of them step out of the room, and the door closes softly.

"Baby, please talk to me. Are you okay?" he asks frantically.

I finally take my hand away from my face and turn towards him. He is starting at me in concern.

"I can't kill our baby Christian," my lip trembles.

 _I can't do this._ I can't believe I almost went through with it. There are other options that we could have looked into, but having an abortion is something that I don't want to do. I know that I would regret the decision afterward. I know that I would beat myself up over what I have done. I see the future, and I see Christian resenting me when it was all over. I know Christian, he wouldn't think that way, but I can't help but believe that he would later on. We need to make the right decision. The right choice for our baby, and I know in my heart that this is not the right option.

"I know baby. I thought we were doing the right thing," he murmurs and runs his hand through his long, wild copper hair.

His hair is getting too long; he needs to get it cut. _He looks miserable. He looks worried and scared._

I sit up, and I bring the blue sheet up to my chest and stare at him with tears in my eyes.

"Can we do this Christian?" I whisper.

I need to know that this is what he wants too. I can't raise this baby alone. I love him, and I need his support if we are going to be parents to this child.

He sighs and looks at his hands.

"It's going to be hard Ana," he says.

"I know, but I can't do this," I murmur.

He leans over and takes my head in his hands and stares at me in determination.

"We are going to be okay baby. We will work it out, and everything is going to be fine," he explains.

I nod my head, and he kisses me softly. _He wants this too. He is serious._

"We need to speak with the doctor," he says.

I nod, and he gets up and walks out of the room. I jump off the table and get dressed. I wipe my eyes as the doctor and Christian reenter the room.

He smiles sympathetically at me and walks over to the rolling chair and sits down with his clipboard in hand.

I sit back down on the bed and Christian sits down on the chair that he vacated earlier. He takes my hand in his and squeezes it reassuringly.

I smile at him weakly.

"Okay, so Mr. Grey explained to us that you both have decided not to have an aspiration abortion. Is that correct?" he looks up at me over his glasses.

We both nod and doctor nods as well. He takes a pen out of his front white coat pocket and writes something down on the paper that is attached to the clipboard. A stethoscope is hanging around his neck. He is an older man, with salt and pepper hair and kind brown eyes. The first person here who does not stare at us with pity or disgust.

A man that understands our situation and does not pass judgment.

"Very well. Have you both considered another option? Or are you both requesting an appointment with an OBGYN?" he asks.

We both look at each other uncertainty.

I bite my lip, and he squeezes my hand and nods at me reassuringly. I instantly relax and nod back at him. _He wants this._

"We would like to see an OBGYN," I say.

He nods and writes something down on the paper.

"Do you have insurance?" he asks. _Shit._

I look over at Christian in panic as he closes his eyes in regret.

"No, we do not," Christian says matter-of-factly.

"I see," he sighs.

I look down at my knotted fingers and take a deep breath.

"Okay. I would recommend you both apply for Medicaid. You would need to have insurance for us to see you here at this clinic. Until then, I would like to start you on prenatal vitamins. I would recommend you call this number for the Medicaid office before your next appointment in four weeks," he explains.

He writes the prescription and number for the Medicaid office down on two separate pieces of papers and hands it over to me. I nod and thank him.

"Seeing a doctor is important throughout any women's pregnancy, so please, make sure you get insurance set up beforehand. Any questions for me?" he nods.

"What would you like for us to do before our next appointment?" Christian asks.

He stands up straight and stares at the doctor intently while he talks. I look at him, and he is hanging on to every word the doctor says.

"Well, I recommend that you take your prenatal vitamins every day. I would like for you to eat regularly and try to eat as healthy as possible. Do not drink alcohol or take any drugs. Just take it easy; that kind of thing. I will give you some pamphlets for you to take home. The do's and don'ts of pregnancy," he explains.

We both nod.

"Any other questions?" he asks.

"Can we still have sex?" Christian blurts out.

I blush and then slap him upside the head.

"Christian!" I hiss.

"What? It's a valid question," he hisses.

He rubs the back of his head and glares at me. I blush beet red and peak up at the doctor.

"It's okay Miss. Steele. The question is asked a lot around here, and it's normal. Yes, Mr. Grey, it's okay to have sexual intercourse while pregnant," he chuckles.

I blush again and close my eyes. _Kill me now._

"Thank you. That is all my questions," he beams.

"Okay. I will put you guys down for four weeks. Hopefully, you will be set up with the insurance by then. If you have any other questions, don't hesitate to call the clinic. The hospital will take care of the prenatal vitamins for you, so don't worry about the cost," he nods towards the paper that is in my hands.

"Thank you," I say gratefully.

"Congratulations. We will see you both back here in four weeks," he smiles.

"Please, head to the reception desk and make your next appointment," he reminds us.

We both nod and he gets up and leaves the room.

Christian and I walk out of the room and head for the reception desk. The women behind the counter look to be in her late twenties with curly brown hair and brown eyes. She is on the phone, and she is typing rapidly on her computer.

"Just one second, please."

She holds up a finger and continues to type on her computer.

I roll my eyes and look around the room while we wait for her to finish. Christian wraps his arms around my waist and holds me from behind. I press my body to his and I instantly relax in his embrace.

The waiting room is full of pregnant women. Some are here alone, and some are here with their husbands or boyfriends. I also see many girls who look to be in their teens, who are pregnant as well. I spot a blonde haired girl; who couldn't be older than seventeen, sitting by the window. She is scanning the room nervously. Her blue eyes are wide and full of fear. She is staring at all the pregnant bellies. She looks intimidated. I try not to look at her in pity, but I can only relate to her. She is scared to death, and I don't blame her.

"Yes, thank you."

The bitchy receptionist says into the phone before she hangs up. She continues to type on the computer for a second before she lets out an aggravated sigh and looks up at us.

She immediately frowns at us and stares at us strangely before she gives us a fake smile. I look at her impassively. We get this look a lot, and right now, I am not in the mood to be criticized.

"What is your name?" she says sweetly.

"Anastasia Steele. I need another appointment in four weeks," I say impassively.

She looks at her computer and squints.

"Our next available appointment is on November 30th. We have a morning and late afternoon slot left. Which would you prefer?" she sighs.

I look over my shoulder at Christian and he mouth _afternoon._

I turn back to her, and she is examining her nails in boredom. I roll my eyes.

"Late afternoon," I hiss.

She flicks her hair behind her shoulder and types in the time on her computer. She picks up a little piece of paper and writes something down. She hands it over to me, and I snatch it out of her hand.

"Have a good day," she says sarcastically.

"We will. Hope you have a very shitty rest of your day," I say sweetly.

Her mouth drops open in shock, and I smile at her, and take Christian's hand in mine and drag him out of the door.

He follows me while trying not to laugh.

I spot the blond haired girl before we make it out the door. I smile reassuringly at her, and she gives me a weak but grateful smile.

We both walk to the bus stop, and when we get there, we both sit down on the bench and wait.

I sigh and put my head in my hands. _It's been a long, exhausting day._

Christian pulls me into his lap and kisses my hair.

"It's okay baby," he coos in my ear.

I nod and snuggle into his neck.

We sit there for a while until the bus parks in front of the stop. I get off his lap and we both get on the bus. The bus is not crowded, so we walk to the back and sit down in the corner. The bus drives off, and Christian pulls me back into his lap.

I put my head on his shoulder, and we sit there in silence for a while until he starts to speak.

"We're going to be fine baby," he murmurs.

I bring my head up from his shoulder and look up at him in apprehension.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" I whisper.

"Of course, I want to do this baby. Look, I know that you are scared, and I am scared too, but everything is going to be okay. _We_ are going to be fine," he reassures me.

My lips tremble, and I nod my head. I look into his eyes, and all I see is sincerity, but I need to know for certain that this is what he wants.

"Would you have resented me for not going through with the abortion?" I murmur.

I need to know that he doesn't resent me for not going through with it. I know what I want, and I don't want to kill our baby. I am selfish, and I want to keep my child. I don't want him to resent me in the future when something happens.

"Why would you think that?" he asks with a frown.

"Because I want the baby, and I don't know what you honestly want. I don't want to push you into anything you don't want to do," I murmur embarrassed.

His lips form a straight line, and his eyes turn hard. He looks angry and hurt.

"Why would you even think that? I love you, Anastasia. I love our baby, and I won't regret it, and I don't regret having this baby. I felt like we were doing the right thing, but deep down; I wanted this baby too. I didn't want to go through with it either, but I thought we were doing the right thing," he sighs heavily.

I nod and gulp.

"It's going to be hard, but we won't fail. We won't abandon this baby. You hear me? We will _not_ fail," he says firmly.

My eyes water as I stare at him. I nod and try not to let the tears fall.

He pulls me into his arms. I wrap my arms around his middle and bury my face into his neck. He does the same and wraps his arms around my neck and coos into my ear softly. The tears fall once again at his next words.

" _We're going to be a family,"_

* * *

 ** _AN: Thank you for reading and reviewing._**

 ** _I appreciate all of the feedback and PM's for the last chapter. I tried to not go into detail, and I appreciate all of your kind words and understanding of the topic. I know some of you were going to stop reading if they did go through with the procedure, and I understand, but that was not my direction. I know in their situation, this choice is the first option for many women. I don't pass judgement, and either way, it's a hard experience to go through, especially in Ana and Christian's case._**

 ** _I know a lot of readers want Christian to find a job, and get off the streets. The story would be over in fifteen chapters if I wrote that into the story after this._**

 ** _I want that too, but the story is about them being homeless and their struggles and their journey on becoming who they are supposed to be. Don't worry, we will get there, but it will be a while. I hope you all continue to read and review._**

 ** _Thank you again for reading, and welcome to all the new followers._**

 ** _Please, check out the Facebook group if you haven't yet: FSoG Fanfic Obsessed. We all would love to have you. :)_**

 ** _Also, it looks like the website review section is down, so if you can't see your review, don't worry, it will show up when FF fixes their issue._**

 ** _See you all soon :)_**

 ** _Pinterest: eminshall07/surviving-with-you/_**


	11. Chapter 10

_**Ana**_

I am laying sideway on my cot. My head is resting on my bend elbow, while gazing lustfully at my hot ass boyfriend. He is laying on his own bed, reading a sports magazine. His brow is furrowed, staring intently at an article about rowing.

 _He is so damn sexy!_ He is wearing a pair of ripped jeans and a dark yellow cable-knit sweater. He finally got a haircut a week ago. He kept it somewhat long, instead of it sitting on top of his shoulders, his copper hair sits just below his ears and curls at the end. The sight of him is making me wet in desire. We haven't had sex since the time we had unprotected sex in the hotel room. It has been difficult having sex while we are living in the shelter. _I'm getting needy. Is this what they mean about pregnancy hormones?_

I lick my lips and look around the large room. Various people are sitting around the area; talking. It is coming on nine o'clock, and people are getting ready for bed.

It has been two weeks since we found out we were pregnant. At first, we were terrified at the thought of becoming parents; due to our situation, but now we couldn't be any more excited.

We have been trying to set up insurance through Medicaid since we walked out of the doctor's office. It has been difficult, to say the least. The good news is that I qualify for CHIP, or the baby does. The program is for low-income families and pregnant women, so we were happy that the baby would be covered when he or she is born. For Medicaid, I am eligible for coverage with that as well, but it's been strenuous because we do not have a residence. Since Christian does not fall under the category of the eligibility requirement; he won't qualify for Medicaid right now.

" _As long as the two most important people in my life are eligible, then everything is fine," He said._

After we had the insurance all set up, we called the doctor's office, and everything should be ready when we go to our appointment in two weeks. I am excited to see our baby. The doctor said we would be able to have another ultrasound, and we will be able to hear the heartbeat.

 _My baby's heartbeat._

The thought brings a smile to my face.

"What are you smiling about over there?" Christian smirks.

I turn my eyes to him, and he is staring at me with one eyebrow raised. His lips lifted in a half smile.

"Just thinking of our appointment in a few weeks," I smile.

He smiles at me softly as he sets his magazine down on the floor, and leans over to take my hand into his.

"I am too baby," he kisses my knuckles tenderly.

He looks up at me through hooded eyes. His eyes darken and without giving it a second, thought; I launch myself at him. _It's been too long._

I am on top of him in an instant. We are kissing each other wildly, while both of our hands roam each other's bodies roughly. I lift my hands into his hair and yank his head back, and kiss and bite his neck hard. He moans loudly as we start dry humping each other frantically, trying to get some form of relief. We forget where we are for a minute as we continue to kiss passionately.

Suddenly, we both hear a strangled couch coming from behind us. I freeze and look down to see Christian staring at me wide-eyed. I close my eyes as I blush deeply.

I suddenly get up and turn around guiltily. My hair is all over the place. I try to fix my unruly hair, as I look up to see Ethan, blushing bright red and looking everywhere but at us once more. _Caught us again._

"I, um…ju-just wanted to confirm our day out tomorrow. Mia, wan-wanted me to remind you guys before we put the kids to bed," he stutters.

I nod my head shyly and look over at Christian. He is sitting up now and is staring at Ethan impassively.

I roll my eyes and turn my attention back to Ethan.

"We will be here, thanks, Ethan," I smile.

He nods and hurries away to the door that leads to the family quarters.

I smile at the thought of sleeping in that room in eight months. Since the room is to accommodate families with small children, we will be able to move in there when the baby is born. There are couple of infants that sleep in there right now. They have several cribs set up at the back for newborn babies, and children that are required to sleep in cribs.

I am grateful for the opportunity to have a crib that will be reserved for the baby. Mrs. Shana let me know that there will be an open crib for when the baby is born. The shelter has also offered to help us with the baby's expenses. To clothes, diapers, bottles, pacifiers and anything else we would need.

We couldn't be more grateful. We are still terrified when the baby gets here, but we are hopeful because we have friends and resources that can help us take care of the baby.

"Tell me why we have to hang out with them tomorrow again?" he scowls.

I roll my eyes and sit down next to him on his cot.

"It's their wedding anniversary. They didn't have any money to do anything, so they asked us if we wanted to hang out with them. It will be fun Christian," I bump his shoulder with mine.

My hand goes straight to my belly as I caress it softly. I have been doing it a lot here lately, and it feels surreal to know that there is another human being growing inside of me. I have had many dreams here lately about the baby, and for some reason; I believe it is a boy.

I tend to see a copper-haired gray eyed boy in my dream. He is laughing as I chase him around a big backyard. With dark green grass and a blue swing set in the background. The sky is clear, and there is no cloud in sight. I wake up with a smile on my face, and I always see my hand resting protectively on my belly.

I come out of my thoughts when Christian sighs loudly.

"Fine," he relents.

I smile in victory at him, and Christian rolls his eyes.

"Come on, we need to get some sleep," he snorts.

"What about finishing what we were doing?" I pout.

He cocks an eyebrow and gives me his sexy smirk.

"Are you horny, Miss. Steele?" he says huskily.

I narrow my eyes at him, and yank his hair hard with both of my hands and smash his lip to mine. We kiss passionately for a few minutes before he suddenly breaks off the kiss.

"Babe, we need to stop," he pants.

I shake my head and bring his lips back to mine, and kiss him more forcefully. He moans loudly and pushes against my arms and breaks the kiss again. He pants out, "Restroom. You. Me. _**Now".**_

I pant, and get up and practically run to the restroom that is on the other side of the large room. I knock on the family room door to make sure no one is occupying it. There is no sound coming from beyond the door, so I look back over my shoulder and see Christian behind me. He is scanning the large room, making sure no one is looking.

He nods frantically, and we enter the family restroom and close the door quickly, and he makes sure to lock the door. When he finally turns around, I roughly push him against the wall and smash my lips to his once more. _God, I need him._

We are ripping each other's clothes off. We are all hands, tongues, and teeth while we roughly kiss each other.

When we are both naked, Christian suddenly takes hold of my thighs and lifts me up. I wrap my legs around his waist, and he immediately lines up his cock and slams into me.

We both moan loudly. He starts a punishing rhythm. I have my hands tugging at his hair, and my head against the wall, and my eyes closed. My mouth opened in silence ecstasy.

"Fuck, baby. It's been so fucking long since I have been inside you," he moans.

I groan at the feeling of his big thick cock pounding into me with full force. _Thank god, we don't need to use protection. He feels so good inside of me._

He is thrusting roughly into me over and over again, and I am about to reach my climax when suddenly we both hear a timid knock on the door. He stops thrusting and stares at me wide-eyed.

"Excuse me, are you going to be much longer? My daughter has to use the restroom," a muffled female voice says behind the door.

Her voice sounds hesitant. I groan and place my head on Christian's chest in defeat. _I was almost there!_

Christian pants, "We will be out in one second!"

He looks at me with a small smirk and starts to thrust slowly into me. _Oh, yes!_

My mouth opens once again in a silent scream. I close my eyes and reveal in the exquisite feeling.

"We need to be quick baby," he kisses me on the corner of my mouth.

I nod and he continues to thrust into me slowly.

"Harder, baby harder. I'm almost there," I pant.

He grunts and pushes into me harder. He takes one of his hands off of my thigh, and brings it to my swollen clit and starts to rub it gently. I throw my head back and let go.

"Fuck, baby," he hisses.

He brings his mouth to mine and shoots his load into me. We both come down from our orgasms while panting into each other's mouth.

"Come on, we need to get out of here," he says.

I nod, and he sets me down on the floor, and we hurriedly get redressed.

I look in the mirror and try to fix my hair to where it was before. I nod at him when I am ready, and he runs his hand through his hair to tame it. He takes a deep breath and unlocks the door and opens it, revealing an embarrassed looking red-headed woman. A five-year-old girl is standing next to her. She is wiggling her legs, and then jumping up and down.

"Mommy, I need to go," she whines.

Her mom is blushing and looks down at her daughter.

"Let's go," she murmurs embarrassed.

I look at her shyly as we both get out of the way, and they enter the bathroom.

Christian sighs and looks over at me smirking.

I smack his arm as I glare at him. He chuckles, and throws his arm around my shoulder, and guides me over to our beds.

He takes off his sweater and pulls down his blanket. I remove my shoes and I take off my own sweater. I have a plain white shirt underneath. I don't like to wear my bra to bed, but when you are living in a shelter, you don't really have an option.

There are donated pajamas that are available for us to wear, so I decide to go over to the donation room and try to find some to wear. Christian follow behind me and we both look through the boxes.

I come across a red plaid shirt and shorts set. I look at the tag and it's a size bigger, but I decide to take these anyway. Since there is no one in here, I get dressed quickly inside the room, so I don't have to walk all the way back to the restrooms. When I am done, Christian has done the same. He has found a plain gray shirt and pajama pants and is just finishing getting dressed.

Christian looks over at me and winks. I bite my lip as he walks over to me with bare feet, and his old clothes in hand one hand.

He takes my lip from my teeth with his thumb and smirks at me. I kiss the side of his mouth. He smiles, and takes my hand into his and leads me out of the room.

When we get to our beds, we throw our clothes under our cots and I drag my bed towards his bed. I get in and get comfortable. He lays down and opens his arm, inviting me to cuddle with him. I smile and snuggle into his side, and I sigh contently.

"Love you," he whispers.

"Love you too," I whisper back.

Various people's murmurs and muffled conversations fill my ears as I close my eyes just as the lights turn off, leaving me to fall into a blissful slumber with the man that I love beside me.

* * *

 _ **AN: Thank you for reading and reviewing.**_

 _ **If you haven't already, check out my husband's new FSoG story titled: Christifornication by AaronThMi**_

 _ **I have been editing the story for him, so please, check it out. XOX**_

 _ **Pinterest: eminshall07/surviving-with-you/**_


	12. Chapter 11

_**Ana**_

I wake up to Christian kissing me softly on the forehead. A smile grazes my lips as I rouse from a deep sleep. I have slept peacefully all night long. Another beautiful dream about the baby. My smile widens when I find my hand cupping my belly protectively.

I look up, and Christian smiles down at me and places his hand on mine. Both of our hands rub gentle circles on my exposed stomach. He leans down and kisses me softly under my belly button.

"Good dream?" he asks lovingly.

"The best," I smile.

He rubs his thumb over the spot he kissed previously, and beams at me.

"Good baby. Let's get up and get some breakfast. Our child needs to eat," he says sternly.

I roll my eyes and take off my blanket.

Christian has been so protective of the baby and me. He makes sure I eat regularly, and he makes sure I eat healthier. Here at the shelter has good food, but sometimes it is not the best quality. _Who are we to complain?_

We are not taking anything for granted. We have a roof over our heads, and food in our stomachs every day. The way things are going right now, I believe everything is going to be alright. I know for sure that everything is going in the right direction for us. We are looking up, and no longer just surviving for us, but we are surviving for our child.

I get up off my cot, stand up and stretch my muscles. People are also getting up from their beds and walking towards the kitchen for breakfast.

I lean down and grab my clothes and shoes from under my bed.

Christian does the same and grabs my hand, and he leads me to the restrooms so we can get changed into our clothes. Christian kisses me and walks into the male bathroom while I walk into the female one and get dressed.

When I walk out of the bathroom, he is waiting for me by the water fountain. He takes my hand again and leads me into the kitchen. The waiting line is long, and the kitchen area is filled with people.

Children are running around the tables, chasing each other. Single mothers are feeding their kids at the table, and older individuals are sitting down, waiting for the line to shorten before they get up and get their food.

We both grab plates and silverware and wait in line. I see Jason walk towards us. He nods and gets his utensils and gets in line in the back of us.

I smile up at him warmly. He is his usual impassive self. He is looking all around him, observing his surroundings. I decide to make conversation.

"How are you doing Jason?" I ask politely.

He turns his eyes towards me and blinks.

"I'm fine. How are you?" he says impassively.

"Pregnant," I say proudly.

His eyes widen for a second and then he frowns.

"You're pregnant?"

"Yes," I nod.

He just stands there and stares at me like I am crazy. Christian sighs heavily and shakes his head.

"Well…Congratulations," he grumbles.

I bite my lip and nod. I shift on my feet and look down embarrassed. My eyes start to water at his facial expression. He looks disappointed. He has always been like an uncle to me. I don't like to disappoint him. He means a lot to me, and I want his support. I want him to become the baby's godfather.

I have been thinking about it a lot here lately, and I decided to talk to Christian about it the other day. He was, of course, supportive and stood by my decision. He likes Jason, and I can tell that Christian wanted his approval as well.

We didn't have a father growing up, so I believe he looks up to Jason as more of a father figure.

I look up, and he is staring at me blankly. I decide to ask him to be our baby's godfather.

"Would you be the baby's godfather? I really look up to you, and I would love for you to be in the baby's life," I murmur.

He pales and his mouth drops open. He stands there frozen and just stares at me. I stand there nervously. My hands are sweating, causing the silverware to slip slightly from my hands. We move up the line as the people in front of us continue to fill their plates with food.

I see Mia, Ethan, and the kids get in line about ten feet back. She sees me and waves enthusiastically. I smile weakly and wave back at her. Christian moves beside me and puts his arm around my shoulder.

"Jason?" he pushes.

He snaps out of his trance and turns to his impassive self.

"I would like that very much. It would be an honor," he murmurs.

My mouth drops open at him agreeing to become our child's godfather. He suddenly jumps and is immediately on high alert when someone drops their silverware on the floor somewhere in the room.

I beam at him and throw my arms around his neck. He freezes and suddenly stiffens when I kiss him on the cheek.

"Thank you, Jason!" I gush.

He coughs and straightens his posture when I let go of him.

Christian chuckles at my public displays of affection.

"The line is moving," he blurts out.

I smile and turn around and skip forward and accept the food that is offered to me.

The menu this morning is scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage and toast with your choice of jam or butter. I get some extra helpings of eggs since many of the kitchen staff know that I am expecting. I choose strawberry jam for my toast.

I skip to an empty table and sit next to Christian. Jason walks past us and sits on the opposite side of the room. I sigh. I know he is not used to affection, so he is distancing himself from us. He needs a break from all the emotions. I don't blame him.

I open my carton of milk and drink it all in a couple of gulps. Christian has kindly brought me one white milk and one chocolate.

He chuckles and shoves his food into his mouth. I stick my tongue out at him and start on my eggs.

"Hi!" Mia squeals.

"Hey," I beam up at her.

She comes over to our table and sits down. Ethan gives us an embarrassed wave and sits down next to Mia. Liam comes around the table and gives me a big hug. I smile and kiss his cheek. He blushes and runs to back his mother's side. Mia giggles and starts to break up Lola's food for her. She smiles cheekily at her and shoves the food into her mouth with both hands.

"Happy Anniversary you two," I smile.

Mia jumps up and down in her seat and beams back at me.

"Thank you! I am so excited for today. I am glad you both can come with us. It's going to be so much fun!" she giggles.

I laugh and nod at her enthusiasm. I am excited to be able to join them today.

"So, where did you want to go today?" I ask.

I grab my toast and spread the strawberry jam over it. I chew it and continue to listen to our plans for the day.

"We decided we wanted to do something for the kids, so we are going to New Center Park and listen to a live band, and watch a free movie screening…oh and a picnic!" she says.

My eyes widen at the plans for the day. I smile and also start to jump up and down in my seat in excitement. We have never done anything like that before, and I cannot wait.

Christian smirks at me while biting into his toast.

"Excited baby?" he winks.

"I am," I laugh.

He shakes his head, and we continue to talk while eating breakfast.

* * *

We all walk to the bus stop a couple of hours later. We have changed our clothes into something more appropriate for the day at the park. The shelter had a new shipment of donated clothes that arrived yesterday morning. I am wearing a pair of pale blue jean shorts over black leggings. A fluffy black sweater and black lace-up ankle boots. I decided to die my hair back to my original hair color; brown. I have it down today with minimal makeup on my face, courtesy of Mia.

Christian is wearing a pair of loose dark blue jeans, a blue silk shirt, and an unbuttoned dark blue cardigan. Mia looks stunning with her light brown hair up in a messy bun, a brown knitted sweater and black leggings that are ripped at one knee. Ethan is dressed in a simple pair of jeans and a black shirt with a loose cream sweater.

The kids look adorable. Liam is wearing jeans, a white sweater, and brown boots. Lola is wearing a long blue knitted sweater, jeans and a pair of baby moccasins.

 _So adorable!_

We all walk across the street when the bus stops in front of us. We all get on the bus and sit down at the back. The ride to the park takes about forty-five minutes. Since it's Friday, the park is crowded with people, starting the weekend off with a family outing.

We all walk off the bus and walk onto the sidewalk that leads to the park. I smile and look all around me. The park holds a huge stage in front, with tall city buildings in the back. Groups of people and their families are all seated in the grass under picnic blankets. We brought us a couple of blankets of our own to sit on. We also brought a picnic basket that the shelter packed for us. I am thankful that they provided us our lunch.

I squeeze Christian's hand and beam up at him in excitement once again. He smiles and leans down and kisses me. Mia walks over to me and drags me forward. We giggle as we all make our way to the grass. We find a space that is not already occupied and spread the blankets on the ground.

The kids fall onto their bottoms and stare at the park in wonder. Poor things have never been to anything like this.

The park holds this once a year, and it closes in a week, so I am excited to experience the last weekend of the festivities. We all begin to unpack the food, and we start eating. The food consists of bologna sandwiches and two kinds of potato chips; barbecue and regular. We also have bottled water for us, and juice boxes for the kids. We eat and chat amongst each other. I smile as I see many children enjoying the various types of music. They dance around the stage and jump up and down in absolute joy.

The music consists of blues, country, and soft rock music. A weird combination, but very entertaining. The free movie doesn't start until five, so we are going to stay here and play at the park with the kids until it starts. There is a big projector in the back of the park and a huge screen that stretches out on the center stage. I'm getting excited just thinking about it.

We haven't watched TV in a long time. The shelter has a television in the family room, but the only thing that they play is Cartoon Network; mainly for the kids. It will be a nice change. Christian and I usually play cards and board games that the shelter provides. That is the only entertainment that we are used too. Sex is also on that list.

I bite my lip at the thought of last night. I look over at Christian, and he is eating and enjoying the music. He bobs his head to the soft rock song that they are currently playing. I chuckle and put my head on his shoulder. He kisses my forehead and continues to eat his food.

I finish my sandwich and start on my barbecue chips. Just as we are about to pack up the picnic basket, Ethan suddenly gasps. I frown and look over at him, and he is deathly pale. He is staring at something in the distance, and I follow his gaze.

I see a tall blonde girl around my age standing about twenty feet in front of us. An immaculately dressed older couple is standing beside her holding hands. They are all standing there with shocked faces. My frown deepens when I see Mia freeze and her mouth widely pops open when she sees them looking over here. The kids are oblivious to the tension that is now suddenly surrounding us. They are looking over at the stage, dancing to the now country music.

I turn to Christian, and he is equally perplexed. He looks at me and mouth _who are they?_

I shrug and look over at the mystery people once more. The girl that is my age is scowling at Ethan now. _Who the hell are they?_

She suddenly storms over in our direction. Christian stiffens and blocks me with half of his body when the mystery girl gets to our blanket.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here?" Her lips turn into a sneer when she stares at the kids.

Mia snaps out of her trance and shoots up off the ground and scoops up Liam and Lola. She turns to me, and her eyes are glistening with tears. _What the hell?_ I frown and try to get up off the ground.

Christian gently pushes me back down onto the grass.

"Stay here," he hisses.

"Christian, I have to see if Mia and the kids are alright," I grit.

I see Mia walk off quickly with the kids. She is heading towards the play area.

"I don't want you out of my sight. Please, just stay here," he demands.

I sigh exasperatedly and look over at the girl who is now fuming. Her face is turning red, and she has her arms across her chest. The girl is tall with long wavy strawberry blonde hair. She is wearing a long blue maxi dress with a jean jacket over her shoulders. She is also wearing a pair of expensive black ankle boots. _She looks familiar. Have I seen her before?_

Ethan leaps up to his feet as the older couple stands beside the blonde girl. They are also scowling at us. They look like they are both dressed in designer clothes. They are immaculately dressed in black jeans, designer shoes and cream cashmere sweaters. The older women are carrying a tan designer bag like the one the girl has, but hers is dark blue.

The couple is now staring at us in disgust.

"Well, hello there, Ethan," The women sneers.

"What the hell do you want?" Ethan hissed.

Christian pulls me up to my feet and takes my hand. I put my other hand protectively over my belly. _These people are giving me the creeps._

The blonde girl looks over at me in judgment. She looks me up and down, grimacing at me.

We lock eyes and her green eyes look oddly familiar. It hits me suddenly.

 _Holy Shit!_

It's Ethan's sister; Kate.

It's his parents.

My mouth drops open, and my eyes widen. Christian figures it out as well, and now he is scowling at them. I come out of my trance and glare at the blonde bitch. She is now locking eyes with Christian and is staring at him with lust.

 _Oh, hell no!_

* * *

 ** _AN: Thank you all for reviewing and following._**

 ** _I have finished the outline for the next ten chapters, so updating should be frequent (I hope)._**

 ** _The drama and the story is now going to start up from here. Be ready because there will be a lot of twists coming soon that I am excited to start writing, so again, be ready for the angst and drama. Some of them are the questions that I have been frequently asked in reviews ;)_**

 ** _Thank you all for the support and also the readers who have started to read and enjoy my husband's new story; Christifornication. I am his beta and I am also co-writing some of the later chapters, so please, check it out if you are interested. :D_**

 ** _Till next time._**


	13. Chapter 12

_**Ana**_

"What. Are. You. Doing. Here?" Ethan hissed.

Kate drags her greedy eyes away from Christian, and smirks at Ethan. _Fucking bitch._

"Didn't realize I had to have _your_ permission to come to a public event," she smirks.

Ethan grinds his teeth and glares.

She moves her eyes away from Ethan and her icy glare land on mine.

"Who might you be?" she cocks her head the side and narrows them at me.

Christian pulls me behind him just before I start to put the bitch in her place.

"Christian!" I hiss.

"None of your goddamn business," Christian bites out.

"Oh, touchy, touchy. I like that," she purrs.

"Bitch…" I start to lunge towards her but Ethan and Christian pull me back.

"Don't Ana, the bitch isn't worth it," Ethan hissed.

"Excuse me? What did you just call me?" The bitch sneers.

"Darling, Darling, it's okay. We don't want to cause a scene," the older lady says sweetly.

I roll my eyes and snort.

"Let's go Ana. This doesn't concern us. Let's leave them alone. This isn't our battle to face," Christian murmurs in my ear.

I glare at the bitch that is shooting daggers at me. I move my eyes towards Christian and nod. In a move to piss the bitch off, I run my hands up Christian's chest and curl both of my hands around his neck and kiss him.

When we break, he smirks and takes my hand and leads me away to the playground. I glance back over my shoulder and see her glaring menacingly at me. Ethan and his parents are arguing while I give her a smug smile, before I turn around and follow Christian.

We get to the playground, and see Mia pushing Lola on a swing. She is discreetly wiping her tears away with her sweater. My eyes soften and I feel like shit that she has to go through this, when all she wanted to do is give her kids some happiness for a day. _And it's her anniversary. Some way to celebrate it._

"I am going to play with Liam. Do you want a few minutes with Mia?" Christian murmurs.

I nod and he walks over to him. Liam is going down the long slide, happily oblivious to the drama that is going on with his dad and his horrible grandparents. I sigh and walk over to Mia.

"Hey," I whisper.

"Hey," she murmurs back.

"Are you okay," I say timidly.

I sit down on the swing beside Lola and study her.

"No, not really. I hate them Ana," she whimpers.

"I know. I am sorry you have to go through this. Especially today of all days," I say sympathetically.

"Yeah, well, it is what it is," she shrugs miserably.

"You know I am always here for you if you want to talk," I offer.

I want her to know she has me that she can confide in.

"I know. I am happy that I have you and Christian as friends. You get us, and our situation. It's nice to have someone to talk to while living in the shelter," she murmurs.

She wipes her eyes with her hand and stop the swing so Lola can go play on the playground. She happily hobbles off towards her brother and Christian who are now playing tag. Mia sits down on the swing that her daughter just vacated.

We sit there in silence, while we watch Christian and the kids play freeze tag. I chuckle as I look at them. Christian is going to be a great dad. I am looking forward to the journey of parenthood. Mia takes my hand and looks at me fondly.

"He is going to be a great dad. He's good with them," she giggles.

I laugh and agree. _Yes, he is._

We sit there on the swings for another couple of minutes before we both see Ethan stomping towards us. In the background, I see his parents. They stare over at us in judgement, before the women places her arm around the bitch's shoulder and guides her off in the opposite direction.

His father stares at us impassively for a few seconds before he turns on his heel and cockily walks away. I roll my eyes in annoyance, before Ethan comes to kneel in front of Mia. She lets go of my hand and stares at her husband.

"I'm sorry Me-Me," he coos.

"It's not your fault, Ethan," she whispers. She looks down at her lap and plays with her fingers.

I get up off the swing to give them some privacy. I squeeze Ethan's shoulder before I walk off towards the kids. He smiles weakly at me before he turns his attention back to his wife.

"Play with me Ana," Liam giggles as he twirls himself in a circle.

I laugh and do the same. Soon enough, Christian and Lola come over to us and join in on the fun. We laugh and chase each other while Mia and Ethan smiles while they sit on the swings and watch us from the sidelines.

* * *

"Baby? Wake up, were here," Christian whispers in my ear.

I slowly wake up and open my eyes. We are back at the shelter.

I look over at Mia and Ethan and they are holding a sleeping Lola and Liam. They quietly walk off the bus with the kids in their arms. I stand up and stretch my limbs. Christian takes my hand and leads me off the deserted bus.

After the whole drama with Ethan's parents, we decided not to let them ruin the rest of the day. So, we forgot all about them and continued to have a great time. We laughed, we played, walked along the park and finally watched the movie on the big screen.

It was a funny family movie about talking dogs. The kids had a good time, and that is all that mattered. It is now around eleven o'clock when we all step off the bus.

The shelter stopped letting people in around seven, so we are not able to go in at this time of night. Mrs. Shana has gracefully given us some money for a hotel for the evening. She wanted us to come back and pick it up afterward instead of us sleeping on the streets. _I wouldn't want the kids sleeping in an ally or a park bench._

Christian knocks on the shelter door. The night manager see's us and nods. He goes back in for a few minutes before he comes back and hands Christian the money.

"You all be careful out there, you hear me?" Cedrick says.

We all nod tiredly and he shuts the door. Christian walks back to us with the money in hand. He takes it out and counts it.

"One-fifty. Why don't we go find a hotel, and get these two into bed?" he suggests.

Ethan and Mia agree. We all sit down at the bus stop and we wait for another bus.

I lay my head on Christian's shoulder and try to wake myself up.

"Did you all have fun?" Mia whispers to us.

She has a sleeping Lola on her shoulder, and Ethan has Liam.

"Yes we did. Thank you for inviting us," I whisper and smile back.

"I am glad you guys came," She smiles.

"We did too, Mia," Christian smiles at her fondly.

She beams back at him. I smile at their exchange. He doesn't show it, but he thinks of Mia as a little sister. It's adorable.

The bus comes and we all get up slowly and get on the bus. It's still deserted, so we all sit at the back and are silent on the way to the hotel. We get off the bus and we all walk to the hotel lobby.

The building is all brick, with many tall windows and a green awning in front. A yellow vintage sigh that says _Hotel_ mounted on the corner of the building.

We all get settled into a room after Christian and Ethan checked us in. We have a big room with two queen beds and a pull-out couch for the kids.

Ethan and Mia softly place the kids on the now-made sofa bed and tuck them in. They do not stir or wake up. Mia sighs and goes to the bathroom before bed.

Christian leads me to one of the queen beds. I take off my boots and get under the covers. Christian does the same and I cuddle up beside him when he gets comfortable.

Mia comes out of the bathroom and softly tells us goodnight. Ethan shuts off the light and we all quickly fall asleep.

The next morning, we all get up and head downstairs to eat the continental breakfast before checking out. When we are all done with breakfast, we all head back for the bus and ride towards the shelter.

That day, we all spend time together once more before going our separate ways for the night and all throughout Sunday. All in all, it was a good weekend.

* * *

 _ **Two Weeks Later**_

"Are you excited?" Christian asks.

"I am," I beam at him.

We are at the doctor's office for our first official check-up. Today, I am eight weeks along, and we are hoping to hear the baby's heartbeat. We checked in at the reception desk, thankfully the rude women who was here before is not working today.

"Anastasia Steele?" the nurse calls out.

"That's me," I wave my hand.

The nurse smiles as we walk hand in hand over to her.

"This way, please," she says.

We walk to a small room. The nurse takes my blood pressure, height and weight. She also wants me to pee in a cup to check for any bladder infections. She also asks me questions about my last menstrual period and see if I am experiencing any cramps or unusual bleeding. I tell her no, and she writes everything down on my chart.

"Alright, let's go to the ultrasound room and check the baby," she smiles.

We all head towards the room. After I lay on the bed, she comes over and pulls out a device from a drawer.

"First, let's check the heartbeat," she says.

I nod happily. She comes over and presses a button and places the end of the device to my stomach. Christian holds my hand tightly.

Suddenly, we all here the most beautiful sound. My hand flies to my mouth and tears of joy run down my cheeks.

"That's your baby's heartbeat. Healthy and strong," she smiles.

I smile and look over at Christian. He is smiling and has tears in his eyes. He kisses me softly and I wipe my tears with my shirt.

"Okay, the doctor will be right with you," she says. She closes the door.

Christian and I sit there, smiling at each other lovingly.

The doctor comes in a few moments later. He is still wearing his long white coat, a stethoscope around his neck.

"Well, how is everything going?" he smiles.

He sits down on the stool and takes out a pen from his coat pocket.

"We're great," I beam.

"I see you figured out the insurance, that is good. Now, let's see how the little gal, or guy is doing," he says.

I nod and he comes over to do the ultrasound. As he gets it all set up, he tells me to pull up my shirt. He squirts the cold gel onto my stomach and moves the probe around, while looking at the monitor.

"Here we are. Perfect little heartbeat. Everything seems to be in order," he says while concentrating on the screen.

He points to the little blip on the screen. He takes a couple of measurements of the baby before printing out some pictures for us.

I-beam, as well does Christian. He explains that I need to have a pap smear before the appointment ends. I nod and he performs the exam.

After the excruciating exam, he tells me that I need to get blood work done. He says that he wants us to come back in four weeks for another appointment. He wishes us another congratulation before he leaves the room.

A nurse comes in and does my blood work. After she is done, she wishes us a good day and leaves the room. I get up and we both walk out of the doctor's office. I smile at the ultrasound picture that is in my hand.

"Are you happy?" Christian asks while we wait for the bus.

"Extremely happy," I smile while looking into his eyes.

"I am too baby," he smirks.

He kisses me on the forehead just as the bus comes to a stop. We get on, and take a seat at the back. We drive for five minutes before the bus stops to let people on.

"Elliot!" Christian says.

I look up and see Elliot walking towards us. He beams as he spots us sitting in the back. I beam back. We haven't seen him in a while. He is his usual handsome self. Dressed in jeans, a white shirt and a brown leather jacket with a plaid shirt around his hips. He is wearing his signature brown lace up boots.

Elliot has always had that bad boy vibe about him. He is sweet, funny, charming and loyal to a fault. He's always been like a big brother to Christian and I.

"Well look who it is," he smiles.

Christian gets up and they embrace, pushing each other playfully.

I get up and he takes me into his arms. Squeezing me to death. I giggle and he chuckles.

"How's it hanging little squirt?" he ruffles my hair.

I laugh as I playfully punch his shoulder.

"Dick," I giggle.

We all sit down and talk about what we have been doing lately.

"I just got back from my trip. Relaxing, and just what I needed," Elliot smirks and places his hands behind his head.

Christian chuckles as I roll my eyes.

"I met a girl. Hot as hell too. She invited me to her parent's party tomorrow night. You guys want to come? She said I can invite friends," he wiggles his eyebrows.

"I don't know man," Christian frowns.

"Oh, come on now. We haven't hung out in a while, and I really want you to meet her. Both of you," he looks over at me and pouts.

I shake my head and bump Christian's shoulder with mine. He smirks and shakes his head as well.

"Alright I guess. Sure, we would like to come see the chick who likes your ugly ass," he smirks.

Elliot snorts and punches him in the shoulder.

He writes the address on a piece of paper and gives it to Christian.

"See you at six," he winks.

He gives me a bear hug, and he shakes Christian's hand before he gets off at his stop.

 _This party should be interesting._

* * *

 ** _AN: Thanks for following and reviewing._**

 ** _Drama and twists will start next chapter. :)_**


	14. Chapter 13

_**Ana**_

"Baby are you ready to go?" Christian wraps his arms around my waist causing me to jump in surprise.

I look over my shoulder and see him staring at me intently.

"Yeah, I'm ready," I smile.

I am standing by the windows in the kitchen of the shelter. It is the night of the party, and we are set to leave and meet up with Elliot in a few hours.

The house where his _new lady friend_ lives is an hour away from here, so Christian and I need to take a few buses to get there. Elliot offered to give us a ride there, but we decided just to take the bus, so that if we wanted to leave at any time, then we didn't have to rely on other people to drive us back.

I look down at my outfit and try not to squirm. The area that we are meeting Elliot at is in a wealthier neighborhood and I do not own anything extravagant. Apparently the girl Elliot met is well off and comes from a very rich and influential family.

I turn around in his arms and stare up at Christian nervously.

"Do I look okay?" I bite my lip and tug my shirt down.

I am wearing blue skinny jeans, with a white camisole and a matching colored cardigan and flats. We really don't have any nice clothes, and these are the only thing that I could find in the donation room.

"Baby, you look beautiful. Don't stress over what you are wearing. You could wear a paper bag and you would still look breathtaking," he says.

I nod and wrap my arms around his neck. He smiles and kisses me on the side of my mouth. He is wearing a white V-neck shirt, black jeans and a leather jacket. His copper hair is slicked back, making him look utterly sexy.

"Okay. I'm just nervous for some reason," I shake my head.

"Why?" he frowns.

"I don't know. Just going to a party to meet people that we don't know," I shrug.

"Do you want to stay here? We don't have to go if you don't want too," he tenses.

"No. It's okay. We told Elliot we would go, and I don't want to stand him up," I shake my head again.

Christian nods and lets me go, "Okay then. Let's go.

I take his offered hand as he leads me out of the shelter to the front doors. We are about to walk outside when I suddenly remember something.

"Wait," I halt.

Christian stops and looks over his shoulder confused.

"The shelter closes in an hour. Where are we going to go after the party?" I frown.

I didn't think about that. The whole day I have been thinking about what I was going to wear and not where we were going to stay tonight.

"Elliot said he will let us crash at his house, or we can stay at his girl's house. Her parents didn't mind if we stayed over since it was a long drive for us," he explains.

I nod my head and let out a sigh of relief.

"Okay, good," I smile.

He smirks and leads me out of the front door towards the bus stop.

* * *

After a long and tedious bus ride, we have finally make it to our destination.

We walk off the bus, and I look around the area before me. We are in _Bloomfield Hills, Michigan,_ which is about twenty miles away from downtown Detroit.

I look around in wonder and awe. The town is the most beautiful city I have ever seen. _The only one I've seen._

Christian takes my hand and we walk along the sidewalk, past various businesses and restaurants. When we get to the end, Christian pushes the button for the crosswalk as I spot the welcome sign to my left.

 _City of Bloomfield Hills_

 _Established 1932_

I smile as we walk along the crosswalk. I cuddle to Christian's side as he places his arm on my shoulder. He kisses my hair as we walk along the sidewalk to the house we are supposed to meet Elliot at.

It's still chilly out, and there is a cold breeze that surrounds us. I cuddle to him closer and continue to look at my surroundings in awe.

We walk for about thirty minutes until we get to a big metal gate at the end of one of the streets. In front of the enormous black gates, there is a big metal cursive _G_ in the middle. Christian walks over to a keypad and punches in a code that he has written down on a piece of paper. I frown briefly as the gates suddenly opens. Christian takes my hand again and we walk along a smooth gravel road with perfectly cut green grass on both sides of the driveway.

We walk for what seems forever until we curve around to the left and spot a huge house in the distance. The house is big, and it looks like most of it is made entirely out of glass. I gulp and look over at Christian and his face remains impassive as the continues to guide me along the road. The perfect green grass seems to go on forever with tall trees that line the back and left side of the house.

As we get closer to the house, I am able to see more of its perfect features. The structure is made up of redwood, and tall beams that support it. What dominates the house is the huge glass windows that surrounds the front of the house. My mouth drops open as we get closer to the massive oak front doors.

Expensive cars litter the driveway. We weave through the cars and I hear laughter and music coming from inside. We stop at the front doors and Christian knocks, and we wait.

"Welcome. You must be Christian and Anastasia?" a tall man in a butler's outfit answers the door.

"Yes sir," Christian nods.

"Come in, please," the man gestures us in.

We walk inside of the house and I immediately begin to sweat. This house is big and intimidating. This has got to be the largest and grandest house that I have ever seen.

I gulp once more as I walk over to the foyer doors. The man who answered the door, comes over and opens it, and tells us to have fun. We nod and walk through the entrance and come face to face with at least fifty people milling about.

Christian takes my hand as I look around the room in awe. The living room has an enormous sunken section in the middle where some stairs leads to two couches with oversized brown and light green pillows. The walls are a light beige color, with light hardwood flooring. The décor is modern with expensive artwork that hangs on the crisp beige walls. There is an extensive wood and metal staircase that leads to the open room on the second floor.

I am distracted by a black and white sculpture that dominates the wall, that I didn't notice when Elliot had walked up to us. I look over at his smiling face, and immediately spot a small brown-haired girl on his arm beside him.

She is smiling politely at us. She is beautiful. I bite my lip and see her look towards me after Elliot introduces her to Christian. She politely smiles at him before she offers me her hand.

"Addison, this is my friend, Ana. She is Christian's girlfriend," he says.

"Hello, it's nice to meet you," she smiles showcasing her dimples.

I like her immediately. I shake her hand and introduce myself.

"Hello, it's nice to meet you as well. You have a lovely home," I smile.

She beams at me. She is really quite beautiful. She is shorter than I am, even in her five inch heels. She is wearing a knee-length blue dress with lace covering the bottom. Her short brown hair is styled in soft waves that frame her face. Her kind brown eyes are locked onto mine as she talks animatedly about how her and Elliot met. I smile and listen intently while Elliot and Christian talk beside us.

We talk for another five minutes before an older sophisticated couple walks over to us. I look down at my feet when they stop beside Addison. The sandy blonde haired woman smiles warmly at her and gives her a peck on the cheek. Christian suddenly tenses beside me. I frown for a second then stare back at the couple in front of me.

They are dressed in similar matching outfits. The woman is wearing a cream-colored sweater dress with matching shoes, her hair is in an elegant chignon. The brown haired man beside her is wearing a cream-colored cable-knit sweater and black slacks. _He looks oddly familiar. Is that streaks of red in his hair?_ I squint, as they smile politely at us as Addison introduces them.

"Christian, Ana. These are my parents, Grace and Carrick Grey," she says gently.

I pick up my head and Mrs. Grey gives me a motherly smile. I breathe a sigh of relief when she suddenly beams at us.

"How wonderful to meet you. Welcome to our home," she says while taking me into her arms.

I hug her back and suddenly have the urge to cry. Her loving arms and her kindness causes a few stray tears to leak from my eye. I wipe them away hurriedly before she pulls back. She cups my face for a second with her hands before letting go. Her eyes shining with warmth.

"Hello, there young lady. Thank you for coming," the man smiles politely.

 _Okay, I have definitely seen him before._

"Thank you for having us," I say shyly.

"And who is this young man, Elliot?" Grace gestures towards Christian.

Christian stands up straight and holds out his hand.

"Nice to meet you, ma'am," he says impassively.

Grace frowns at him before a smile breaks out on her face.

"It's very nice to meet you too, and none of that ma'am nonsense. Call me Grace," She waves her hand and smiles.

"Grace," he gives her a tight smile.

She smiles and steps back. Mr. Grey comes forward and hold out his hand. Christian stares at him in disbelief. I frown in confusion when I see Mr. Grey's stare at him in shock.

Addison frowns, "Daddy? Are you okay?" She places her hand on his shoulder.

He comes out of his trance and clears his throat. "Of course, Sweetheart. It is nice to meet you, Christian," he says.

"Yeah," Christian murmurs and shakes his hand.

I place my hand into his and give it a squeeze. _What the heck was that all about?_

Grace tells us what they do for a living. She is a pediatrician and Carrick is a lawyer. She touched briefly on Carrick's stint in the military when he was younger. Christian freezes at the last part. I look up at him, confused once more. _What's wrong with him?_

Before Grace can go any further, Christian blurts out, "Where you ever in Texas at one point?"

Carrick looks over at him confused. He stares at Christian for a few beats before he looks down.

"Yes, I was," he murmurs.

"I…I…Elliot, can you point me to the drinks, please," Christian stutters.

Grace looks at him in concern while Elliot frowns.

"Uh, yeah. The bar is over there," he points.

Christian nods and hurriedly marches over to the bar. I frown deeply and before I can go over there to see if he is alright, two men walk over to us.

I gape at Christian when he suddenly slams a shot back. I am distracted once more when Addison introduces the two men beside her.

"Ana, these are my big brothers. Jack and Grayson Grey," she beams.

I look up and see one of them walk over to me and hold out his hand. My breath hitches as I get a good look at him. He's breathtaking.

He is wearing a dark gray suit, a crisp white shirt with no tie. His dirty blonde hair is slicked back, causing his bright blue eyes to pop. I blush when a small smirk appears on his lips.

"Nice to meet you, Miss?" he says smoothly.

"Steele," I stutter.

"Miss Steele," his voice sounds Australian.

He takes my hand and brings it to his lips and kisses my knuckles softly, all the while staring at me. I gulp and blush crimson. _Oh, good god._

In my peripheral vision, I see Christian stomp over to us and yank me away from the hunk before me. _Grayson_ pulls back and smirks at Christian.

I blush when everyone looks at us in amusement.

"Christian. The boyfriend," he hisses and shakes Grayson's hand.

"Pleasure," he nods.

Christian squeezes my waist causing me to wince momentarily. I bite my lip and look up to see the other man come forward with a bored expression on his face. He is shorter than Grayson wearing an all-black suit. His reddish hair is unruly and pushed back from his face. His blue eyes stare into mine with disinterest.

"Jack Grey," he says arrogantly.

"Hello," Christian says in annoyance.

Jack looks Christian up and down with disgust. _What the fuck is this guy's problem?_

Jack stands up straight and puts his hands behind his back, "What do you do?" he says impassively.

"All sorts of things," Christian scans the room in boredom.

"Cute," Jack smirks and suddenly walks away with his head held high.

I roll my eyes and Grace and Carrick look embarrassed. Grace looks up at me with an apologetic expression. I smile to tell her that it's alright. _What an ass bag._

"Sorry about that. My brother is extremely rude sometimes," Addison chuckles.

"It's alright," I tightly smile at her.

"Well, thank you for coming. Please, make yourself at home. We are going to go mingle. It was nice to meet you both," Carrick says while holding out his hand to Grace.

She takes his hand, and they walk off leaving the five of us alone.

"Well, I am also going to mingle. Christian and Ana, it was a pleasure to meet you," Grayson says as he buttons up his suit and nods at us.

I give him a pathetic wave as he gives me a million-dollar smile and gracefully guides himself into the crowd. I see a few girls that are my age stare and giggle at him as he walks by. He doesn't even notice them.

Christian squeezes my waist again causing me to look up at him. His gray eyes are glaring at me. I bite my lip and give him a little shrug. _Hey, I can look, can't I?_

"Don't worry. He gets that all the time," Addison giggles.

I laugh with her and Elliot smirks at Christian.

Jack comes back over to us and whispers something in Addison's ear. She squeals and jumps up and down.

"Sorry, my friend and her parents are here, so I am going to go greet them," she says before bouncing off towards the foyer.

Elliot tells us that he is going to go with her and walks off, leaving us with Jack.

Jack smirks at us and takes a drink that he holding in his hand, the other hand is tucked away in  
his pant pocket.

"So what do you and your brother do for a living, Jack?" Christian say impassively.

"I'm in construction. My own company, _Grey Construction_ , and my brother owns his own business as well. _Grey Enterprises_ ," he says arrogantly once more.

"Cute," Christian throws his words back at him.

He sneers at him and huffs before taking a long sip of his drink.

"Yes, my brother and I are very successful business men. In fact," he points at us while digging into his pockets.

He takes out his black leather wallet and produces a plain white card and holds it out to Christian.

"Let me know if you need work. We are currently hiring for a new cleanup crew. Also, I think my brother is looking to hire in the mail room," he smirks.

Christian's grinds his teeth and glares at Jack. I gape at him. _Fucking asshole!_

He shrugs innocently and takes back his card. He then takes out his vibrating phone from his pocket and looks up at us.

"Well, this has been fun. Please excuse me, I have business to attend to," he smiles.

I roll my eyes as he turns on his heel and barks into his phone, _"Grey."_

"What a prick," Christian snorts.

"Yeah, um, have you noticed that they have the same last name as you?" I say distracted.

Christian freezes again and shakes his head, "So? A lot of people have that name."

I frown at his tone. He is glaring at me, sending me a message that he wants me to drop the subject. I sigh and look around the room. I see Addison walking over to us with a tall blonde girl. My eyes widen when I instantly recognize the girl who is standing before me.

"Well, we meet again," she smirks. _Can this night get any worse?_

* * *

 _ **AN: Here is the next chapter. Sorry for the delay. I am sure you all know that we had to evacuate due to Hurricane Matthew and we drove to Virginia and stayed for a week. We came back Tuesday with no power and we finally got it back on yesterday so we were finally able to write. The power is back on but the internet is still going in and out, and I can't get pinterest to work so I will hopefully get the rest of the pins up for this chapter when the internet is fully restored.**_

 _ **Thank you all for reading and reviewing. I hope you all liked the chapter, and just to clarify, no there will be nothing going on between Grayson and Ana. It was harmless. Like she said, she can look and admire from afar. Heck, if I met a Chris Hemsworth look-alike (That is who I pictured him to look like), I would definitely act the way Ana did. :D**_


	15. Chapter 14

_**Ana**_

"Well, we meet again," she smirks. _Can this night get any worse?_

Addison looks between us confused. "How do you all know each other?"

"Well, bestie, these two are bums who are all _buddy buddy_ with my screw-up of a brother, Ethan." The bitch sneers.

I roll my eyes and Christian tenses. _Stupid Bitch._

How dare she talk about Ethan like that? He didn't even do anything to her. All he did was take responsibility for his child. He chooses Mia and their baby because he loves her. Why the hell does his family have to hate him for his choice? At least he took his responsibility as an adult instead of abandoning them.

"Kate, what a horrible thing to say. They are not bums," Addison gasps.

"Oh, please Addison. Yes, they are. Do you know what they are?" Kate rolls her eyes.

"What are you talking about, Kate," she frowns.

"There homeless just like my deadbeat of a brother," she smirks.

Addison gasps again and looks around the room, for what I don't know.

"What the hell is your problem? How dare you speak to us like that? You don't even know us. Why don't you keep your opinions to yourself? We don't need your petty bullshit," Christian hisses.

Kate huffs and turns around and walks off while flipping her hair in the process. I roll my eyes and scoff. Christian closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. He opens his eyes and turns towards me. I give him a weak smile, and he reciprocates. He places his hand on my stomach, rubbing gently.

I look over at Addison, and she is staring down at her feet. She looks embarrassed. I would be too if I had a friend like that.

She looks up and gives us a sympathetic smile, "I'm sorry about that. I don't know why she said those things. She can be a little over the top sometimes."

"Sometimes?" I say sarcastically.

She bites her lip, "Well, most of the time. I'm really sorry. I keep telling her that what Ethan did was the right choice and that she shouldn't hate her own brother, but she doesn't listen. I think her parents are telling her lies about their son. I mean, I never met him before so I can't judge someone based on what others have said. I don't fully understand why her parents don't want to support their grandchildren."

I nod and give her a small smile. She shrugs and takes a sip of her drink.

"Well, do you guys need anything?" she says awkwardly.

I frown, and Christian looks at her confused.

"No, I have a drink. Thanks," Christian says.

"No, I mean, like money wise, or help. I just feel bad that you guys are living in a shelter. So, if there is anything you need, we can help," she explains.

Christian stands up straighter, and he gives her a tight smile. I am about to say how kind her gesture is but he beats me to it. "No, that's alright. We are fine, but thanks for offering."

She blushes and nods her head. We all stand there in an awkward silence before Elliot joins us.

"What's up?" Elliot wraps an arm around his girlfriends shoulder.

"Nothing babe. We were just getting to know each other better. You have really kind friends, babe," she smiles up at him.

He leans down and gives her a chaste kiss. "Thanks, babe. This ugly mug, though, is a pain in my ass," he points to Christian and winks.

Christian scoffs, "Pot calling the kettle black," he smirks back.

Elliot throws his head back and laughs loudly causing all of us to join him.

"Mind telling us what is so funny?" Jack walks over to us with his brother in tow causing everyone to stop laughing.

"No, we were just bullshitting," Elliot chuckles and took a drink that he has held in his other hand.

Jack gives us a look of disapproval and Grayson smirks. "So, what is it that you do, Christian?" Grayson says formally.

Before Christian can answer, Jack jumps in, "He doesn't have any employment right now little brother. I did, however, tell him we were both hiring at our companies."

I grit my teeth in annoyance. What the hell is this douche bags problem? Ugh.

Grayson raises his eyebrow at Jack before he turns to us. "Well, in that case, let me know if you are looking into changing that. Here is my card and my number. Let me know, were always looking for hardworking individuals," he gives Christian his card which he takes reluctantly.

"Thank you, Mr. Grey. I will bare that in mind," Christian says politely.

He nods. "Excellent."

Jack rolls his eyes and takes another drink. I inwardly roll my eyes at his arrogance.

"So, where is your girl, tonight, Grayson? Didn't get a chance to see her yet," Jack gestures to the crowd of people.

"She couldn't make it tonight. She had a work function she couldn't miss, but she sends her love to everyone," Grayson says smoothly.

"Ah yes, work is important." Jack nods. He turns his attention to us. "My brother's girlfriend is a very successful business woman," he says smugly.

Christian mumbles _whoopie_ under his breath, causing me to look down and bite my lip, so I don't laugh out loud. When I compose myself, I look up and see Grayson staring at me, a ghost of a smirk on his lips. He takes a drink and looks over at Jack.

"Yes, she is a remarkable woman. Where is your lovely lady this evening?" he quirks an eyebrow. I don't miss the sarcastic way he said lovely.

"Leila couldn't make it as well. She is out with her friends tonight for a birthday party," Jack says smugly. _Wow, you have a girlfriend. Lucky you. Not. Who on earth would put up with him anyway?_

"I see," Grayson nods.

"Thank God Leila couldn't make it tonight. You know I cannot stand her, Jack," Addison huffs.

Jack gives her a look of disapproval. "I am aware of your feelings towards her, Addison. We don't need your childish opinion on the matter," he hisses.

She rolls her eyes. "It's not a childish opinion. She is a royal bitch. Especially to our mother. I don't know how you put up with her superior attitude."

"She does not have a superior attitude," Jack scoffs.

"Yes, she does," Addison smirks.

Before Jack can say anything, Grace and Carrick appear. Grace's face is bright red in anger. "Addison, Jack, that is enough," Grace snaps. I look at them feeling suddenly uncomfortable.

Jack turns around and takes a big gulp of his drink, and Addison looks contrite. "Sorry, mom."

"I'm sorry about my children. They usually do not act this way. Especially when we have company," She glares at Jack and Addison.

"It's alright. Brother and sister banter is healthy. I wish I had siblings," I say wistfully.

Grace gives me a warm smile, and Jack turns around and quirks an eyebrow, "You don't have any siblings?"

"No, I just said I don't," I point out.

"Mhmm, well growing up with siblings was an enjoyable experience. Pity you didn't get to experience such a thing," he smirks and takes a drink.

I inwardly roll my eyes but give a tight smile in return.

"I'm sorry you don't have any siblings. How long have you and Christian known each other?" Carrick asks with a hint of curiosity in his voice.

"Our whole life," Christian says dismissively.

"Really? So you two grew up together?" Carrick's eyes widen in surprise causing me to frown.

"Um, yes. Our mothers were best friends," I say.

Christian's arm tightens around my waist. I place my hand on his arm and rub it soothingly. He is always uncomfortable when talking about our mother's or the time when we were little, especially to strangers.

"I see," Carrick murmurs and runs a hand through his hair causing me to frown deeply. He looks pained _._ "Darling, I need to go into my study for a moment. I will right back," he says to Grace. She looks at him in disapproval. He gives her a kiss on the cheek before he turns to everyone else. "Excuse me, everyone," he says and walks off into the crowd.

 _That was weird._

"Is he alright mother?" Grayson says with a slight frown.

"I don't know darling. He has been acting rather strange this evening, but it is probably work," Grace give him a smile.

"Well, It's getting late, and I have an important meeting tomorrow morning. It was great to meet you, Ana and Christian. Please, call me when you make a decision on what we were talking about earlier," Grayson nods at Christian.

"Thank you, I will think about it," Christian murmurs.

Grayson nods and kisses Grace and Addison's cheek and shakes Jack's hand before saying goodbye to us once more then he leaves.

"I am going to go back to the party. You all enjoy, and please, make yourself at home," Grace walks over to me and kisses my cheek before walking off into the crowd of people.

I blush and smile. Addison and Elliot walk off as well leaving us alone with Jack once more.

"Yes, make yourself at home. I am sure this is a once in a lifetime opportunity to be at a place like this. Enjoy it while you can," Jack says arrogantly.

I now roll my eyes at him which causes his eyes to darken and his jaw to tense. Christian scoffs and turns us around, and we walk off without saying anything.

"That guy is an asshole. Fucker," Christian hisses.

I nod, "I know, smug prick," I scoff causing Christian to chuckle lightly.

We find a seat on a nearby sofa and sit down. Christian asks if I want a drink and tell him a water is fine. He gets up and walks over to the bar. I sigh and sit back farther on the comfortable couch and run my hand through my hair and close my eyes.

"Tired little one?" I hear Elliot's voice causing me to open my eyes.

He is sitting across from me with his ankle resting on his knee and his arms across the back of the couch.

"Yes," I smile.

He nods. "I told Christian I would drive you guys back. I know the shelter is closed now, so you two can stay at my place," he explains.

"Thanks, Elliot," I smile at him gratefully.

He shrugs it off and says, "Just let me know when you want to leave, and I will tell, Addison."

I nod, and we sit there and talk for a minute about his job. Christian comes back with my water, and we chat for a while before the bitch Kate comes over and sits down next to Elliot.

"Hello, Elliot," She purrs.

"Katherine," Elliot nods and crosses his arms.

"Are you having fun?" she says while completely ignoring us. I roll my eyes and take a sip of my water.

"I am. Thanks for asking," he says with a bored expression.

I tighten my lips to stop me from laughing as he completely ignores her when she goes on and on about herself. She apparently wants into his pants. The bitch is good friends with his girlfriend, and she has the nerve to try to flirt with him when her friend isn't here. _The nerve of this girl._

"My father has an opening at one of his companies. Maybe he can set you up with a better job," she flips her hair and smiles at him. He looks over at her twisting his lips.

"No thanks. I like my job right now, but thanks for the offer," he grumbles.

"Just let me know, and I will put in a good word for you," she runs her finger over his arm seductively.

He looks at her with distaste before moving over to the other side of the sofa. "Hey, are you guys ready to head out?" he suddenly blurts out. Probably wanting to get away from the bitch. I don't blame him. She is openly flirting with her best friend's boyfriend, and you can tell it's making him uncomfortable.

"Yes, that would be good," Christian says gratefully.

Kate rolls her eyes, huffs and stomps off towards her parents who are talking to Grace and Carrick. It looks like Carrick has rejoined the party.

"Man, I cannot stand that girl," Elliot shakes his head.

"That makes two of us," Christian grumbles causing Elliot to chuckle.

"Make that three," I say. They both laugh, and Elliot goes off to tell Addison he is leaving to take us home.

He comes back a few moments later with Grace, Carrick, and Addison. We all say our goodbyes, and as I am walking towards the front door, something causes me to look back, and I immediately see Jack staring at us with a blank expression. A hint of something in his eyes that makes me want to run and hide. _Hope I never see that creep again,_ I think to myself as I continue to walk out of the door with Christian's loving arms wrapped around my waist.

* * *

 ** _AN: There was some confusion on the last chapter. Yes, Grayson, Jack (Hyde), and Addison were all adopted by the Grey's, since Elliot, Christian and Mia were all thrown into the system._**

 ** _They are all similar characters of Elliot, Christian and Mia. I wanted Grayson to play Christian's character but originally I wanted Jack to have his role instead of Grayson. The difference is that Grayson has more of Christian's personality and the same work ethic, and Jack is only a Millionaire and not a Billionaire (I at least did not want him to have that status)._**

 ** _Hopefully that makes sense._**

 ** _Thank you for reviewing and following. Until next time._**


	16. Chapter 15

_**Ana**_

 **One Week Later**

"Do you have any sevens?" I ask Christian expectantly.

"Go Fish," he chuckles.

I groan frustrated when I pick up another card from the deck. Christian and I are playing _Go Fish_ on our cots. It's more of a child's game, but I am so bored, I pleaded with Christian that we at least play a game of cards. He wanted to play poker, but I wanted to play something more fun. So _, Go Fish_ it is.

We play for a little while longer, until I decide I didn't want to play anymore. Christian looks relieved as he puts the cards back inside the box they came in. I stretch my arms above my head and yawn loudly. It is about two o'clock in the afternoon on a Saturday. I look out of the shelter windows and see that it is raining outside. I sigh and look around the room in boredom.

There isn't anything to really do inside of the shelter, but I am grateful we have somewhere to stay. I look over at Christian, and he gestures to the game room. I scrunch up my nose and shake my head no. I don't really feel like playing any more games.

"I'm a little bored of playing games. Why don't you go and play? I'm actually hungry, so I am going to go and get myself a snack," I gesture towards the kitchen.

"Is the baby hungry?" he rubs my stomach.

"Yes, probably. I don't know, I have been hungry a lot here lately, and I'm not even that far along yet," I frown.

"Well, enjoy it while you can. You know what they say about morning sickness," he shrugs innocently.

I groan as I close my eyes at the thought of morning sickness. "Don't remind me. I am not looking forward to it," I whine.

"You don't know for sure if you will have that anyway. Just don't worry about it right now. Just marvel at the fact that you feel fine right now," he smirks.

"Yeah, your right. Morning sickness is the easier part than the actual delivery. Well, at least that is what they say," I sigh.

"You'll be okay, baby," he kisses my forehead. I nod, and he lets me go. "Come get me if you need me," he says before he walks away.

I walk into the kitchen and see that they still have pieces of fruit laid out. The shelter usually keeps apples, and bananas out for everybody to snack on during the day. They at least want the children to have some healthy options for snacks instead of filling them up with sugar. The parents are grateful for that part. I wouldn't want my kid to run around here with a sugar high all day too.

I pick up a banana and peel it back. I nibble on it while I walk over to the window. I sigh as I look around the wet Detroit streets. The shelter is not in the best of places, but it is the best one in the area. I couldn't imagine going to any other housing. They were always dirty and not well managed. Everyone used to seal everybody's things, especially at night. It got so bad that a lot of people wouldn't even sleep at night because they were afraid that their stuff would be stolen when they got up in the morning.

Christian and I even had our things stolen a few times. I shiver suddenly at the memory. I look back out into the street and eat the rest of my banana when I suddenly notice an expensive black SUV pull up in front of the shelter causing me to frown. _Strange._

At first, I don't pay attention to who gets out of the car until I see a familiar figure coming out of the driver's side. I squint and see the passenger door open and an elegant woman steps out onto the pavement. My eyes widen when I see who they are. _Is that…Grayson and Grace?_

Holy crap! What are they doing here? I start to panic when they walk over to the shelter doors. I watch them knock on the double doors and they both wait patiently. Grayson is wearing a black designer suit, and a crisp white shirt. His dirty blond hair is slicked back, away from his eyes. He is scanning the area with an impassive look on his face. I look over at Grace, and she is now talking with one of the other managers of the shelter. Mrs. Shana is off this week, so Mr. Nelson is taking her place for the next few days.

Grace and Grayson suddenly walk into the doors causing me to back up slowly. I turn around and power walk to the trash cans and throw away the banana peel. I take a deep breath and let it out slowly. _What are they doing here? Are we in trouble?_

The worst case scenarios run through my head all at once. I rub my temples as I walk out of the kitchen and into the main room. I see them saying something to the manager before they both look around the room. Grace beams at me when she spots me from across the room. Grayson nods and smiles at his mother when she points to me. I blush when they walk across the room over to me. I start to fidget and try to smooth down my unruly hair. My hands are slightly shaking as I put my hair behind my ears. They are now standing in front of me smiling.

"Ana, hello darling," Grace embraces me. I hug her back.

She is wearing a dark gray turtleneck with tan slacks and a broad matching brown belt at the waist. She is also dressed in a long dark gray cardigan that matches her shirt with brown high-heeled boots. Her sandy blonde hair is also in an elegant bun on top of her head. She looks as amazing as she did the first time I met her

"Hi, um what are you doing here?" I ask slightly embarrassed.

"We were coming to see how you are. I wanted to talk to Christian as well. Is he around by any chance?" Grayson asks while glancing around the room expectantly.

"Um, yes he is. He is in the game room," I point to the room.

He nods and walks off towards the room. Grace looks over at me and smiles. I smile back as we chit chat for a second before she suddenly asks me how I was feelings.

"Um, okay thanks," I frown.

"Elliot told us that you and Christian are expecting your first child," she explains.

My eyes widen, and I look down at my feet. _I didn't know Elliot told them. What they must think of me._

"I…Yes…Christian and I are having a baby," I stutter.

She gives me a warm smile. "Why don't we have a seat?" she gestures to the tables that are inside of the kitchen area.

I nod hesitantly and follow her to a nearby table. I sit down across from her as she sits down and places her designer purse next to her.

She straightens out her cardigan and gives me another smile. "How are you doing dear?" she folds her hands elegantly in front of her.

I squirm and fidget with my hands that are sitting on my lap. "I'm alright. How about you?" I say shyly.

"We are doing well. We didn't mean just to drop by unannounced, but I wanted to come here and see if there is anything that you need? Addison did mention that you stayed here, and of course of what Elliot told us about the baby, I wanted to know if you needed anything? Perhaps for the baby? I know we only met last week and I do not want to overstep. So If I am just let me know," she kindly explains.

I nod slowly at what she just told me. I don't know what to say. Do I need anything? We don't have anything for the baby, but we have seven months to get everything we need. The shelter is providing us with what we need when the baby gets here, so I don't think we need anything at the moment.

"Well, the shelter is providing us with the essentials for when the baby is born, so I don't think we need anything else right now," I shrug shyly.

She nods and gives me a tight smile. _I hope I didn't offend her._ "What about when those essentials run out? Where do you plan on taking the baby when he or she is born?" she asks expectantly.

I squirm again and stay quiet for a moment. _How do I put this?_

"Um…the shelter is providing us with a room and a crib," I murmur.

"Yes, that is wonderful, but what I mean is how much longer are you planning to stay here? I mean the shelter is only a temporary solution," she pauses and looks like she is debating on if she should go on or not.

I put my head down and bite my lip. I know it is not a permanent solution but what other choices do we have? We don't have any other family, and we don't have anywhere else to go. I guess the only other option is to get jobs, but it's not that simple. A low wage job is not going to get us very far. We could always save the money and use that to get us a small apartment, but that could take a while. I frown, and it's then I wonder why we haven't started doing just that? I suppose it's the history of what Christian went through when he had employment at the fast food place. _Would he get another job like that? Would those places even hire two homeless people?_

I look up at her and she is staring at me with warmth in her eyes, and all I can give her is a shrug. She gives me a sympathetic smile.

"Sweetheart, I know that I am coming to you with all of these questions, and I do not mean to come on so strong, but Carrick and I want to help. You two seem like you need the support, and we wanted to offer that to you, whether it's clothing, a place to stay or even housing resources, Please, let us know," she pleads.

I widen my eyes in disbelief. _She is willing to do that? Why? Why does she want to help out two strangers?_

"Why?" I blurt out. It doesn't make any sense. Why would she want to do this for us? She doesn't even know us. What makes us so unique that she takes time out of her day to come all the way out here?

"I am a pediatrician. I help with physical, emotional and the mental well-being of my patients. I know your baby is not under my care since he or she isn't born yet, but that doesn't mean I don't want to look out for your well-being and of course the welfare of your child. Now, I am not implying that you are not capable of raising this baby. All I am offering is help so please," she takes hold of her purse and digs around for a second before producing a crisp white card. She hands it to me, and I take it hesitantly.

"This is my number. If you need anything, please, don't hesitate to call me if you are ever in trouble or you need someone to talk to. Addison, wanted you to have her cell phone number as well, and you can find it on the back of that card," she explains.

I nod and turn the card over and see Addison's name and number written in neat cursive handwriting. I look up at Grace and see her looking behind me. Before I have a chance to say anything about her heartfelt gesture, Christian comes into view with Grayson. He looks annoyed.

"Everything okay?" Grayson asks the two of us.

Grace smiles and stands up, smoothing down her cardigan once again. "Of course. Ana, it was a pleasure to see you again. Please, call me if you need anything," she gathers up her purse and stands near Grayson.

I nod hesitantly and get up from the table. Christian wraps his arm around my waist. I look up at him, and he still has a hint of annoyance on his face.

"Christian, I hope you take in some consideration on my offer. It is always available, so let me know," Grayson says causing me to frown. _What offer?_

"I will think about it," Christian murmurs.

Grayson nods and holds his hand out to Grace. "Come, mother," He says to her.

She nods and walks towards me, giving me another hug. I wrap my arms around her, and I do everything in my power not to cry. I sniff and let her go and smile tightly. She smiles and walks over to Christian, and he tenses when she suddenly kisses his cheek. He blushes slightly.

"Have a good day you two," Grayson smirks and walks out of the kitchen with Grace in tow.

I sigh as Christian runs his hand through his hair. His annoyance is back. He turns to me.

"What did Grayson offer you?" I ask suddenly curious to know what they were talking about.

He sighs heavily and says, "He offered me a job at one of his sites."

"Really?" I say in disbelief.

He nods and runs his hand through his hair again. "I don't know why they feel the need to come here and offer me a job to a complete stranger," he says getting aggravated once again.

"Grace offered us some help too," I say causing him to frown.

"What did she tell you?" he says curiously.

I tell him what we were talking about and he looks more annoyed than before.

"Why? They don't even know us," he stops then snorts suddenly. "Pity, that is all this is. Fucking pity," he scoffs.

I huff and roll my eyes. "It's not pity, Christian. They just wanted to help. I don't know why it's an issue. It's not like we don't need the help that they are offering," I say.

He looks at me in disbelief. "You actually want to take them up on their offer?"

"Why wouldn't I? Christian, they are right by the fact that we can't stay here forever. We need to start thinking of the baby and where we are going to take him or her when it's born," I frown.

"We're not taking them up on their offer, Anastasia," he says firmly causing me to look at him dumbfounded.

"Why? Christian, they just want to help. Why don't you want them to help us?" I say frustrated on why he is acting like this.

"I don't need their help. This is not their problem. This is my family, and I will take care of you two without their help. This conversation is over and were not discussing it again," he narrows his eyes at me.

I shake my head at his attitude. I know Christian is a prideful person, but they are offering a chance for us to make our own money. To find our own place to live, and he doesn't want that, so I ask him.

"Well, if you are not going to take Grayson up on his offer, can we at least look for employment elsewhere?" I ask.

He runs his hand through his hair and sighs loudly. "Yes, Anastasia, _I_ will look for employment and _you_ are not."

"Why? I can work," I frown. _What does he mean?_

"No, Anastasia, you are not working. I will take care of it, and you are going to stay here and just relax. I don't want you working while you're pregnant," he points to me.

"Fine. Also, stop calling me, Anastasia. You know I hate that!" I huff.

He smirks as I throw my hands up in annoyance, turn around and march away while he chuckles behind me.

* * *

 _ **Carrick**_

I am sitting here in my home office on a Saturday afternoon. I am holding a tumbler of scotch in one hand and an old photo in my other hand. I am staring blankly at my closed office door while trying to make sense of the information that I received just two days ago.

I robotically take a drink of my scotch and marvel in the burn that it gives me. I hesitantly look down at the photo once more and see a picture of a young woman from my past who is holding a small child.

A child who looks exactly like me.

* * *

 _ **AN: Thanks for reading and reviewing. Keep them coming. Until next time :D**_


	17. Chapter 16

_**Two Weeks Later**_

 _ **Ana**_

"Just let it out baby," Christian coos in my ear while he rubs my back.

I groan as I push my head further into the toilet and vomit again. Christian pulls my hair back once more and continues to rub my back soothingly.

I have started the dreadful part of morning sickness a few days ago, and I feel like death. I'm nauseous all the time, and this is the second morning in a row that I have gotten sick. Since I have found out that I was pregnant, I have felt great. I still had my energy, but since this awful morning sickness showed up, I have felt like shit ever since. I have no energy at all, which sucks in itself, but with all the nausea, I feel ten times worse.

Finally, after emptying my stomach, I sit back on my legs and wipe my mouth with my hand. I make a face and stare at Christian's that shows nothing but concern.

"Are you okay baby?" he asks.

"No. I hate this," I whimper.

I try to breathe through another round of nausea that hits me suddenly once more. It doesn't help. I place my arm over my mouth before I feel I am about to get sick again, so I hurriedly put my head into the bowl and squeeze my eyes shut. Christian pulls my hair back again and rubs my shoulders. I groan and start to dry heave once more. After about a minute, I fall into Christian's side and start to cry. _I hate this._

"Shhh," Christian coos into my hair. He runs his fingers through my hair as tears run down my face.

He flushes the toilet and gently gets up with me still in his arms. He leads me over to the sink and turns on the water. He fills a foam cup with water and hands it to me. I wash my mouth out and spit into the sink. _That is disgusting._ Christian leaves the bathroom for a second without saying anything. I am too weak to ask him where he is going, so I lean over the sink and place my cheek on the cold tile causing me to shiver. I whimper and close my eyes as the nausea returns for the fifth time this morning. _Fuck. Why won't it stop?_

I can't take this anymore. This nausea is already killing me. When it started, I was just nauseated during the day. All day every day and I didn't get sick once. Now, that is all I do. I hate getting sick. I can't stand hearing or witness people vomiting. I have horrible anxiety about the act of vomiting actually. Every time Christian has gotten sick in the past, I break out in a cold sweat when he gets nauseated or when he has the signs of running to the toilet. I don't know why, but I hate seeing it, and I absolutely hate hearing other people get sick. Ugh, thinking about it now makes me want to run to the toilet once more. _What is the phobia called?_ _Emetophobia_ _?_

I close my eyes and will the nausea away. I hear the door open, and I open my eyes a little to see Christian walking into the bathroom with a toothbrush and toothpaste in his hand.

"Here baby. Brush your teeth; it will make you feel better," he explains.

I nod and stand up slowly. He hands me the toothbrush and paste, and I brush my teeth. It makes me feel a little better. I wipe my mouth with a paper towel and take Christian's outstretched hand, and we exit the bathroom. When we get out, I see two women standing in line waiting to use the bathroom. One of them loudly says, "Finally," before she walks into the bathroom and slams the door. I roll my eyes and walk behind Christian.

"Here lay down baby," he points to my cot.

"What about our day?" I pout. Christian and I planned to go out today. We have been cooped up in the shelter for the last two weeks, and I am starting to get restless. Well, until I begun to get sick.

"You just got done getting sick. We are not going anywhere right now. You need to rest," he shakes his head.

"Can we at least go tonight? I need to get out of here for a minute," I groan.

Christian sighs and runs his hand through his hair. "Fine, but right now you are going to sleep."

"Okay," I nod and get into bed. _That sounds good right now_. He covers me up with the wool blanket and kisses my forehead gently.

"Get some sleep," he says softly.

I close my eyes and quickly fall into a deep sleep.

* * *

I wake up some time later to see Christian laying beside me reading a book. I yawn and stretch my arms and legs. Christian stops reading and puts the book down beside him and sits up.

"How are you feeling baby?" he asks.

I sit up too and place my feet on the ground. "Better actually," I say relieved.

"Good. It is about 5:20. Do you still feel up to going out?" he sits beside me.

"Yes, I do. I really need to go out and do something before I go stir crazy," I chuckle.

He smirks and gives me a kiss on the lips. We both get up and get our jackets on that we keep under our cots. I sit down and put on my converse before Christian takes my hand into his and we walk out of the shelter hand in hand.

We get to the bus stop and sit down on the bench. The air is chilly so I cuddle up to Christian's side, and he kisses my forehead. I feel a little nauseous still, but the nap really helped.

The bus pulls up, and we head in to find a seat. We are walking to the back, and I am surprised how empty it is for a Friday night. There are a few women and one man who appears to be a little older than us. He looks familiar to me. I frown and look him over. He is wearing baggy jeans with a light gray sweatshirt underneath his gray jacket. He has a gray beanie on his head, and a pair of big black headphones that are hanging from his neck. He is staring at the window with a miserable expression on his face. We walk towards where he is sitting, and he moves his eyes away from the streets of Detroit over to us. His bright blue eyes land on mine and stares at me impassively for a second before staring back out of the window. His hand comes up to his head, and he rubs his hand over his beanie before using that same arm to lean towards the window.

Christian and I sit down at the back, and I turn my eyes towards the man once again. He is still staring out of the window. He still has that miserable expression on his face. He looks tired and worn down. I find it intriguing to look at people and try to imagine what is going on in their lives. It's interesting to see how other people's face expressions tells you who they are, or what is happening to them at that exact moment. The man looks defeated like he doesn't have an answer to all of his problems. _I know how he feels._ He suddenly sits up straight and places his headphones up to his ears and starts his CD player. His head starts to move up and down to the beat of the music he is listening to. I can barely hear the music or what they are saying, but I can make out a quick beat. He is listening to rap or possibly R&B. He takes out a piece of wrinkled paper out of his hoody and starts writing things down. He keeps bobbing his head up and down, and writing things on that piece of paper while he lip syncs to the words of the songs he is listing to. I smile at the way he is moving his fingers. _He must be a rapper._

I stare at him for a second longer before I let him be. I sit back and sigh. Christian looks over at me and smiles. He puts his arm around me as we ride the bus to our destination.

Twenty minutes later, we are in Elliot's neighborhood. He called the shelter a few days ago and invited us out tonight. Apparently, Addison is out of town with her girlfriends this weekend, so Elliot has some free time. We haven't seen each other since the party, so it will be nice to hang out and catch up.

We get off the bus and head into Elliot's apartment building. Thankfully the gang that hangs out in front of the building is not there. _Thank God._

We walk up the stairs and knock on his door. After a few seconds, Elliot answers the door with a big smile on his face. He is wearing a blue sweater with black skinny jeans and white converse. His blond hair is slicked back from his face showcasing his cute little dimples.

"Yo bro. Glad you could make it," he smirks.

Christian and Elliot slap hands and give each other their unique man hug.

Elliot turns to me. "Little bitty. How are ya?" How is the baby doin?" He picks me up into a bear hug causing me to giggle.

"I am fine and so is the little one," I say when he finally releases me.

"Come on in you two," he waves us in.

"So what is the plan for tonight?" Christian asks while we sit on Elliot's couch.

His apartment is decorated in a typical bachelor pad. His living room consists of a black leather sofa. A black coffee table, and a few pictures of cars that line the pale brown walls. There is a small boxed TV set by the front door and an Xbox that is sitting on the little table that the TV sits on. Multiple video games are stacked on the TV stand as well. The small white kitchen is connected to the living room, and two bedrooms are off to the side. In the small hallway that leads to the bedrooms, there is a small bathroom at the end. Elliot doesn't have much in the space, but he is doing well for himself. Better than we are doing at the moment.

"Well, I was thinking of going to see a movie? How does that sound to you? Or we could just hang out here and play some video games? I bet I could beat you at _Halo_?" He smirks at Christian who just rolls his eyes and huffs.

I shake my head at the thought of staying in and watching these two play video games. "No, let's go out. I don't really want to sit here and watch you play that all night," I groan.

"Alright then. No video games, and movie it is!" Elliot smirks and gets up to retrieve his jacket that is sitting on the small kitchen table by the bar.

"What are we going to see?" Christian asks as we descend the stairs.

Elliot shrugs his shoulders. "Don't know. We will just play it by ear when we get there."

Christian nods and squeezes my hand as we walk down the stairs. We get to the bus stop and get in. We ride for about twenty minutes until the bus drops us off at the nearest movie theater. The Detroit movie theater stands in front of us. A few people are waiting in line at the front for tickets. We look at the big white sign that shows all the movie choices. We mutually decide on _Enemy of the State,_ Starring Will Smith and Jon Voight.

Elliot pays for the tickets, and we go inside. We buy a bag of popcorn and some bottles of water before we head into the theater. We sit down and share the popcorn and the water. The movie begins to play, and we sit back and watch. After the credits get done rolling, we head out of the theater and walk outside. It is now after eight, and I am getting tired. The shelter closed an hour ago, so Elliot offered us to crash at his place.

"Come on. Let's go put this one to bed," he smirks and places his arm on my shoulder, and we walk off into an alley.

I shake my head and Christian shoves Elliot's arm off of me, and this causes Elliot to laugh. Christian pulls me to his side and kisses my hair. I giggle at their playfulness.

"Hey, I'm fucking starving. That popcorn didn't hit the spot. You guys want to order a pizza?" Elliot asks as he rubs his belly.

Christian's snorts, "Dick."

"Fucker," Elliot smirks back.

"That would be good. I'm hungry too," I chuckle. The nausea is gone, thank god. I will probably regret eating the pizza, but oh well. I'm hungry.

We walk down the semi-lit alley for a second. I can see the street down a way. I look up and see a few metal stairs leading to metal doors on the side of the brick buildings. The dim street lamps do nothing but make the ally creepier than it really is. Before we hit the main street, a few guys come out of the shadows suddenly making me jump up in surprise.

"Curtis, look. It's the fucker and its bitch," the guy laughs and points to Christian and I. He is smoking a cigarette.

I pale and see it's the guys that always hangs in front of Elliot's apartment building.

"What's up, Elliot. What are you doing with these two mother fuckers?" he points to us again and takes a drag of his cigarette.

Christian tenses and out of instinct, steps in front of me to block them from my view. I start to shake for some reason. These guys give me a bad vibe.

"What's up, Jamal? We were just heading home bro. Catch ya later," Elliot says nervously.

"Where the fuck was you going? I didn't say you could go anywhere bro," I hear the guy say as we start to walk forward. Christian squeezes my arm, telling me to keep quiet and I nod even though he can't see me.

"Look, Jamal. We don't want any trouble, man. We just want to get back to my apartment," Elliot says.

I can't see them, but I can imagine Elliot holding up his hands in the air, telling the guy that we don't want any trouble.

"Na, na, the way I see it, the party has just begun, man," the guy says causing my eyes to widen.

"What the fuck do you want?" Christian hisses suddenly. I freeze and start to shake harder. _What is he doing?_

I try to tell him to be quiet, but he ignores me and walks forward. "Christian, no!" I exclaim, but Elliot blocks me with his body.

"Ana, be quiet," Elliot hisses at me over his shoulder. He takes hold of my arms with his hands, causing me to squirm in his hold.

I try to get past him, but he keeps his hands on my arms so I can't go forward. I struggle with getting freed as I hear Christian and the guys start to argue.

"Elliot, let me go!" I yell, but he doesn't listen.

I finally peak over his shoulder and see Christian surrounded by four guys. They are in his face, cussing him out and Christian is standing there with his fists balled at his side and his face is bright red in anger. I look over at Elliot, and he is grinding his teeth and glaring at the guys that are circling him.

"Elliot do something," I plead with him. I don't want him to get hurt. They're starting to get into his face.

Elliot races over to them when one of them shoves Christian into the brick wall. I scream when one of them suddenly takes out a gun from their back pocket. They push the barrel into Christian's face and laughs. Christian's eyes widen when he notices the gun in his face.

"What the fuck do you say now, pretty boy?" he sneers.

Christian glares at him and balls his fists until his knuckles turn white. I am frozen on the spot at the scene in front of me. Elliot is trying to get to Christian, but the other three are blocking him.

"Jamal, man, what the hell are you doing? Let him go, bro!" Elliot yells.

"Na, Elliot. This fucker needs to get his," the guy says all too quietly.

I scream again when he suddenly punches Christian in the side causing him to groan in pain. Elliot tries to run over to him, but the three guys start beating him up. They are kicking him over and over again the second he hits the concrete. I look over and scream _Help_ as tears are running down my face as the guy hits Christian over and over again. He falls to the ground, and he starts kicking him in the side. Christian is groaning in pain while he continues to kick and cuss him out. I keep screaming for him to stop kicking him, and I whip my head around to see Elliot curled up into a ball as they continue to kick him as well. I start to hyperventilate when the guy suddenly points the gun at Christian once more.

My whole world stops when suddenly the gun goes off and the next thing I hear is me screaming at the top of my lungs.

* * *

 _ **AN: Sorry for the cliffhanger. I will try to get the next chapter up ASAP. Thank you for reading and reviewing.**_


	18. Chapter 17

_**AN: Sorry for the delay. I had no time to write but I finally had some downtime today and finished the chapter. I am not a doctor or nurse so excuse any mistakes that you might see with his prognosis and treatment.**_

* * *

 _ **Ana**_

"Jamal! Let's go bro!" one of them yells.

I am standing in front of Christians bloody body while the four of them run off into the darkened alley. I scream once more when I see Christian's limp body. I run over to him and fall to my knees and throw myself onto him.

"Christian! Please, don't leave me!" I shout into his bloody shirt.

"Ana," I hear Elliot whimper behind me.

I pick my head up from his shirt and see Elliot limping towards us. Tears are streaming down my face as I bring my eyes back to Christian.

"Please, help us, Elliot," I whimper.

Elliot falls to the ground beside us. His face is etched in pain, and he is clutching his side. His eyes are still screwed shut. He slowly opens his eyes and looks right at me.

"Elliot, are you okay?" I start to panic.

"Yes. Go get help, Ana," He groans.

I shake my head, "I can't leave him," I cry out.

Elliot groans again while he places his head on the ground. He has a massive bruise forming on his face from the beating. I start to panic when I look over at Christian and see he is still unconscious. I take his head into both my hands and look at him wildly.

"Christian!" I shout.

I gently place his head on the ground, and see the gunshot wound to his shoulder and apply pressure. Christian still doesn't stir. I look over at Elliot, and he is quiet, and he is not moving.

"Help! Somebody, please help me!" I yell out.

Tears are still streaming down my face as I apply pressure to his wound and continue to shout out, praying that somebody will hear me. Elliot suddenly groans in pain and starts to stir. My hands are soaked in Christian's blood. I sob into his shirt and yell out once more.

"Hey! Are ya'll alright?" somebody suddenly says.

I whip my head to the sound and sigh in relief when I see three people walking this way.

"Oh My God! Somebody call an ambulance!" one of the girls yells when she spots the pool of blood on the ground.

"Jesus," the guy mumbles before he starts to run out of the alley. He gets to the street when a cop car skids to the curb. I keep putting pressure on his wound and watch as two police officers run over to us with the guy from before.

"Ma'am you need to get back," one of them says. They come over to us and lean down and check Christian's pulse. The other police officer checks on Elliot who is now awake and groaning in pain once more.

"Please, help him," I whimper. I take my hand away from his wound, and the police officer takes over.

"I will. Please, step back," he gestures to the wall.

I nod weakly and walk backward until my back hits the brick wall. I slide down, with tears streaming down my face as I see the officer speak into his radio. He requests an ambulance and checks, Christian, over.

"This is Officer White. We have a male in his early twenties with a gunshot wound to his shoulder with a weak pulse. Another male, same age, with a possible concussion. We need medical assistance, please," he speaks into his radio calmly.

The other police officer is talking to Elliot. He is now sitting up and still clutching his side. He is nodding weakly as the officer continues talking. I squeeze my eyes closed, and I place my hand on my stomach. _Please, let him be okay. I can't raise this baby on my own._

I put my head in my hands for a minute and try to breathe deeply. I look up when I hear an ambulance, and a fire truck stops at the end of the alley. I jump to my feet when the medics race towards us. I stare at Christian's still unconscious form as they gently lift him up, and place him on the gurney and attach an oxygen mask onto his face. I race over to him, and one of the medics holds me back.

"Ma'am we need to get him to the hospital. Please, step back," she says firmly.

"No, I can't. I need to be with him," I say in a rush.

"Are you family?" she asks.

"He's my boyfriend. Please, I need to be with him," I beg again.

She sighs and nods her head, "Okay, you can ride with us," she says.

"Thank you," I say as they wheel him to the ambulance. I look back and see that Elliot nods at me and gives me a tired smile before they place him on the gurney. I nod as tears glisten in my eyes. The police officers are taping the area with yellow tape and talking to the people who checked on us.

We get into the ambulance, and I sit down beside Christian while they start working on him. They assess his wound and hook him up to an IV. The two paramedics tell me that they are administering morphine for the pain. I nod and wipe my tears off with the sleeve of my shirt. I look over at him, and he is still sleeping. They have the oxygen mask still on his face to help him breathe. I place my knees up to my chest and circle my arms around them and stare at his sleeping face.

All I can do is wait and pray that he survives as we drive to the hospital.

* * *

Twenty minutes later, we arrive at Detroit Medical Center. The paramedic opens the back doors to reveal three doctors waiting for us at the entrance of the emergency room. They wheel him out as the physician's rush over to us. The paramedics tell the doctors what his vitals are and what happened. They wheel him into the hospital as I rush over to his side. Before I can get to Christian, one of the doctors halts me. The other doctors are assessing in a hurry as a nurse attaches a bigger blue breathing mask to his face and they squeeze it while the doctors look at his eyes and wound.

"Ma'am, please, he needs to be taken into surgery. You need to wait in the waiting room, and a doctor will let you know what is going on," she says. I nod, and she runs over to them, and they wheel him into the operating room shouting medical jargon that I do not understand.

I slump down in the waiting room chair and whimper. I rub my hands over my jeans, and it's then I notice the blood on my hands, shirt and now on my jeans. I pick up my hands and stare at them in horror. I whimper once again as the reality hits me full force. _Christian was shot._

My hands shake while I start to cry into the empty waiting room. I see doctors and nurses run around the emergency room while I weep into my sleeve. I start to get up when a voice halts me in my tracks.

"Ana?"

I look up and see a blurry version of Grace standing near the nurse's desk. I try not to sob as she stares at me in concern. She runs over to me while she throws her stethoscope over her neck. She gasps when she notices my bloody clothes.

"Oh, my darling girl, what happened?" she asks.

She leads me to the chairs and sits down. I try and compose myself.

"Christian," I whisper.

"Christian? What happened honey?" she takes my hands in hers.

I tell her what happened and she looks horrified. I start to cry again as I finish telling her that Christian was shot. Before she can say anything, we hear somebody burst through the front doors, and we both look up to see Addison and Kate run into the room.

"Addison?" Grace says questionable.

She looks over at us with tears running down her face. She breaks down and runs over to us and throws her arms around Grace. Grace coos into her hair as Addison tells her what happened to Elliot. Grace lets her go and rubs her back. She turns to me with red swollen eyes and they widen when she takes in my appearance.

"Oh, my God. Are you hurt?" she runs over to me and looks me over.

"No," I whisper.

"They called me and told me what happened. I am so sorry," she wipes her eyes with her palm.

I bite my lip. I don't know what to say. I don't even know what is going to happen to the love of my life. The father of my unborn child.

I glance at Addison, and it looks like they came straight from a club. She is wearing a long-sleeved gold sequence dress with black tights and black high heels. I look over at Kate, and she must have been with her because she is dressed up as well, but a little bit sluttier. She is wearing a short blue long-sleeved dress with rhinestones and red stilettos. The dress is a little bit provocative for my taste. She is also dressed in a long-sleeved double breasted trench coat to hide some of the dress. She has a too much makeup on, and her hair is in big waves. She is looking around the room awkwardly. She seems to be out of her league, and it gives me a little bit of satisfaction of seeing her uncomfortable.

"Ana, sweetie. Let's get you cleaned up," Grace says softly.

I nod and follow them down the hall. Kate hesitates for a second before I hear her high heels clicking on the floor behind me. I sigh and continue to walk behind them. Grace leads us to an empty employee lounge and directs me to a brown sofa. I sit down and wait as Grace finds me some extra clothes. Addison sits beside me and takes my hand into hers. I give her a weak smile, and she reciprocates. Kate sits down on the opposite couch and places her oversized purse beside her.

Grace comes back and hands me some clothes and tells me that I can go ahead and change. She points to a door. I thank her quietly and head over to the bathroom and change. I close the door and turn around to see my reflection in the mirror. My hair is matted to my forehead. The front of my white shirt is completely soaked through with blood and a few spots on my jeans. My eyes are swollen and red from all the crying causing me to start up again. I lean my head back and will myself not to cry. _He's going to be okay._

I repeat this a few times before I believe it. I nod in determination and walk to the sink and wash off my hands. I try not to cry when I see the blood go down the drain. I take a deep breath as I scrub my hands with soap and water. When the blood is off, I wash my face and remove my soiled clothes. I put them in a pile by the door and get dressed in the clothes that Grace gave me. Some jeans and a clean T-shirt. I put on some clean socks and put on some white slip on shoes that nurses always wear when they are working. I put my hair in a ponytail and walk out of the bathroom.

Grace, Addison, and Kate are talking quietly on the sofa. Grace gets up when I walk towards them. She tells me that she had received an update and said that Christian is still in surgery and that Elliot is awake and doing fine except for a mild concussion and bruising to his stomach, face and chest. I look over at Addison, and she looks relieved but gives me a weak smile. Kate has a small smile on her face as the looks at Addison.

Grace tells us that we can go back to the waiting room. I agree, and we all get-up and walk over there. I sit down on the uncomfortable chair, and all I can do is wait. _Please, let him be okay._

* * *

A few hours later, a doctor in a white coat walks into the waiting room.

"Christian Grey?" he looks up from his clipboard.

I notice Grace tense slightly. I frown but don't think much of it considering everything that has happened. I jump to my feet and walk over to him. "Is he okay?" I ask apprehensively.

Grace and Addison both place their hands on my shoulders. Kate went to grab something to eat.

The doctor tells me that he made it through surgery and that they are now transferring him to a recovery room. He tells me that the bullet hit his shoulder, but luckily it didn't hit any arteries. They removed the bullet and patched him up, and placed his arm into a sling. The doctor informed me that he will likely need some rehabilitation and that they are giving him antibiotics to prevent an infection. Tears are leaking out of my eyes when he finishes talking.

"Thank you," I murmur.

He nods and speaks to Grace for a minute about Elliot and walks away. I breathe a sigh of relief that he is going to be okay. I wipe my eyes with my hand as Grace tells me that I am allowed to see him for a while. I nod gratefully and follow her to his room on the second floor. Addison gives me a hug before going to check on Elliot. I thank her for sitting with me through Christian's surgery before she follows Kate, who is now back, to the end of the hall.

When we get to his room, I push the door open and see Christian laying on the bed, sleeping peacefully. He is wearing a hospital gown, and I spot white gauze taped to his injured shoulder, and his arm is supported in a sling. The doctor says it will take a few hours for him to wake up. I walk to his side and take hold of his hand, trying not to touch his IV line.

"I will let you have some time alone with him. Do you need anything Ana?" Grace says softly.

I shake my head no, and she nods. She squeezes my shoulder and tells me that she will be back soon. She stares at Christian for a moment with a strange expression. She leaves the room after giving me a comforting smile and closes the door quietly. I sit there and stare at his beautiful face. He's a little pale with dark circles under his eyes. His copper hair is sticking up like it always does. A small smile tugs at my lips as I run my hand through his soft hair. I carefully lean down and place my head on his pillow. A lone tear slips out of the corner of my eye as I watch him sleep, grateful that he made it.

* * *

 _ **AN: Thanks for reading and reviewing.**_


	19. Chapter 18

_**Ana**_

I jump awake when I feel someone run a hand through my hair softly. I lift my head groggily and see through a haze, Christian staring at me with a small smile. My eyes widen as I jump off the bed and gasp.

"Christian!" I am wide awake now.

"Hi baby," he chuckles as I launch myself at him without even thinking of his injury.

"Careful baby," he groans when I accidentally hit his injured shoulder with my arm.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Oh," I gasp and get off of him.

"It's okay baby. Come here," he opens his good arm so I can snuggle to his side.

"Are you okay?" he asks concerned.

"Am I okay? What about you?" I frown as I look up at him. _Why is he asking me if I am okay? He was the one who was shot._

"I'm alright," he frowns deeply. He stares at me as if he hasn't even been severely hurt.

"I was so scared, Christian. You were shot. How can you be so calm right now?" I sniffle.

"Ana, I'm fine. As long as you are not hurt, then everything is okay," he sighs.

"No it's not okay," I get off the bed and start to pace.

Why is he acting like this? He was shot for Christ Sake! He almost died because of what happened. Why did this have to happen? Why does everything have to go so wrong?

"Anastasia, will you stop pacing and sit down," he snaps.

"No! Christian, it is not okay! I almost lost you!" I shout as tears run down my face.

"Hey, Ana, come here please," he begs me as I put my head in my hands and weep.

"I-I'm sorry," I stutter into my hands.

"Ana, please, let me hold you," he begs again.

I slowly make my way towards him while I still have my head in my hands. I get to the bed and feel Christian's hand try to pry my hands away from my face.

"Baby, please look at me," he murmurs.

I sniff and slowly look up at him. He is staring at me with a guilty expression.

"Baby, I am sorry I made you upset. Please, let me hold you," he murmurs as he runs his hand down my face softly.

I get on the bed and lay my head on his chest gently as he places his good arm around my shoulder and slowly lays back.

"I'm sorry. I made you cry. You know I can't stand to make you cry. It's just that-

"What?" I sniff into his chest.

"I know you were worried, but I was more worried about you. If they did something to you," he whispers.

"Nothing happened to me," I look up at him, and he has his eyes closed, and his face is etched in pain.

"Christian," I take my hand and bring his face closer to mine. He opens his eyes and looks at me with haunted gray eyes. "I am okay," I implore him with my eyes.

"What if something happened to the baby?" he eyes widen in fear.

"The baby is fine. They didn't even touch me," I reassure him.

He takes a deep breath and places his head in the crook of my neck. I run my hand through his hair and massage his scalp. He puts his hand on my belly and rubs gently. I sigh in content as we lay there in each other's arms.

* * *

I wake up some time later, to a knock at the door. I pick up my head to see a nurse walking in the room. I yawn and stretch my left leg. The nurse smiles as she reads Christian's chart.

"How is he doing?" She gestures to a still sleeping Christian.

"He's doing okay, thanks," I smile.

"Wonderful. He should need some more pain medication, so I will give him another dose before he wakes up," she explains as she gets the needle ready. I nod as she walks over and gives him a dose through his IV line. "The doctor should be in to see him in a few hours," she says when she is finished.

"Okay. What time is it?" I ask.

"It's around seven thirty am," she says while looking at her wrist watch.

"Thank you," I smile.

"Your welcome. His light breakfast should be here before eight. The cafeteria is open for breakfast until nine if you're hungry," she laughs as my stomach suddenly growls causing me to blush.

"Sorry," I say embarrassed.

"It's quite alright. Let me know if you need anything," she smiles warmly at me before leaving the room and closing the door quietly, so she doesn't wake Christian.

I get off the bed slowly and stretch my muscles. I let Christian sleep a little longer. I use the restroom and wash my hands. I try to comb my hair with my fingers, so it doesn't look like a rat's nest and leave the room. Christian is still sleeping when I get done, so I head out of the room and get something to eat in the cafeteria. The baby is hungry.

Nurses and doctors are walking around the hallways. I walk pass various patient rooms until I get to the elevator. I get to the cafeteria on the second floor and walk in. The area is open, and the design is modern. Several booths and tables scatter the open room. The colors consist of different shades of brown with bright lighting. I see a couple of servers setting up various foods causing my stomach to growl even louder.

I walk to the buffet style counter and take a plate. Before I have a chance to get some food, I spot the prices of a plate on the board in front of me. _Shit._ I bite my lip and set the plate back on the counter. I sigh and turn around. I stop and look around the room feeling despondent. _I guess I am not eating today._ I look over my shoulder and stare at the food in longing. I quickly look away when I get pity stares from the servers that are passing out the food to other customers.

"Are you okay sweetie?" a sweet voice suddenly says startling me.

I look up and see a blonde, blue-eyed women standing next to me. She is dressed a white patterned shirt, a black leather jacket, skinny jeans, and black studded ankle boots. Her blonde hair is up in a messy bun. She is gorgeous. She stares at me expectantly.

"Yes, I'm all right," I say brightly.

She frowns and purses her lips. "Are you in line?" she points to the food.

"Oh, no. Go ahead," I blush and move out of the way.

"It's okay. If you want something, you go first. You were here before me," she smiles.

"No, really, it's okay. I didn't want anything anyway," I lie.

"Okay, cool," she says.

She picks up a plate and puts some eggs on her plate. My mouth waters at the delicious food in front of me. My stomach growls causing her to look over at me. She frowns. I look away embarrassed and hurriedly walk to one of the booths in the back and sit down. I put my head in my hands and try to ignore the hunger. _I will just share Christian's food when he gets it._

I sigh and decide just to head back upstairs. I want to be there before Christian wakes up. Before I can get up, the girl from before comes into view.

"Are you sure you are okay?" she says. I look up at her, and she is frowning deeply.

"Yes, I am fine," I give her a small smile.

She stares at me with narrowed eyes. She cocks her head to the side and suddenly sits down in front of me. I squirm when she stares at me. Her bluish green eyes are assessing me intently. She looks down at her food and picks up an apple and offers it to me. I stare at her confused.

"Here, take this," she sighs.

"No, thank you. I'm not really hungry," I inwardly face palm myself. _She already heard your stomach growling, you idiot!_

She puts down the apple and steeples her fingers together and stares at me with a raised eyebrow.

"I don't like apples, but thanks for offering," I lie again. _Stupid._

She sighs and takes her hands and rubs her temples. "Look, I know you're hungry, and I know you are lying. Please, just take the apple, and if you don't want that, then I can give you some cash to go get something that you do want," she points to the food counter behind her.

"I-It's okay," I stutter. I don't know what to say. I am hungry, but I hate asking other people for money.

She goes to speak again, but I cut her off. "It's okay. I need to get back to my boyfriend," I say in a rush and get up from the table and briskly walk away.

"Hey, wait!" she tries to get my attention, but I don't stop or answer her, I just keep walking. I hate being rude, but I am embarrassed to admit that I don't have any money to buy food.

I wipe the lone tear that slips out of my eye with my finger and continue to walk to Christian's room. I get to his door and take a deep breath. I hope he is awake. I look at the wall clock that is in the hallway and see that I have been gone for forty-five minutes.

I open the door and see Christian awake and eating his breakfast. He eats the last bit of egg with his good hand and drops his fork and lays back, sighing contently. I deflate. _I guess I am not eating._ He spots me at the door and smiles brightly.

"Hey, baby. Did you eat?" he stares at me expectantly.

I put on a fake smile. "I did." _Why are you lying?_ I don't want him to worry; that is all. He frowns briefly before nodding.

"I woke up, and I didn't know where you were. The nurse said that she told you about the cafeteria, so she told me you were probably getting something to eat. She also informed me that you sounded pretty hungry," he chuckles.

I blush at the thought of her telling him my earlier episode of my growling stomach. And if things couldn't get any worse, my stomach growls again. I start to panic when he frowns in confusion.

"Are you still hungry?" he narrows his eyes at me.

"I'm fine. Probably just gas," I blurt out. _Really, Ana? Gas!_

"You're lying. Baby, tell me the truth," he sighs.

I put my head down in defeat. I have always been a terrible liar. I don't want him to feel guilty for eating all the food. He didn't know, and the nurse told him I was eating down at the cafeteria. _He's not a mind reader, Ana._

"You have to pay for the food down there," I murmur.

He groans, and I faintly hear him say _shit._

"Why didn't you come back up here? I could have shared mine. Babe, you need to eat," he says exasperatedly.

"It's okay-," I say, but he is having none of it. He puts his hand up and angrily hits the nurses button that is beside his bed.

"Nurse!" he shouts.

"Christian, it's-," he cuts me off again.

"It's not fine! You need to eat. The baby," he hisses.

I nod weakly. I know he is right, but what can we do? We don't have any money to buy me anything. The nurse walks into the room confused when she sees Christian fuming.

"Is everything okay in here?" she asks with a frown.

"No, it's not. She needs food. Can you please bring her some?" he grits his teeth.

She frowns deeply before she says, "The cafeteria is open-," she starts to say, but Christian rudely cuts her off.

"I am fully aware it is open. You never informed me that the food is priced. So I am asking, if you could bring her some up here without her having to pay for the damn food," he snaps.

"Sir, it doesn't work that way. Food is brought in for all patients, and all visitors and family members have to pay for their own meal," she calmly explains.

"Christian-," I beg him not to say anything about us not having money.

"Did it ever occur to you that maybe some people do not have money?" he snaps again, ignoring my pleading expression.

I close my eyes when he blurts it out anyway. I look over at the nurse embarrassed of what he just said. I'm usually not this ashamed about our situation, but for some reason, right now, I am. She looks at me with a sympathetic smile.

"Mr. Grey, I do not assume personal situations. I do not discriminate, nor do I butt into people's private business. I will see what I can do," she smiles at me before walking out of the room.

I whip my face around to Christian and glare at him. He huffs as he slowly lays back on his bed. "Did you have to just blurt that out like that?" I snap.

"Yes, Anastasia, I did. You are pregnant, and I am not allowing you not to eat," he snaps back.

I sigh heavily and look up at the ceiling. He's right. I need to eat, but the way he went about it was embarrassing. I breathe out slowly and look over at him. He is staring out of the window with a frown on his face. I walk over to him and run my hand through his hair. He slowly closes his eyes and purrs. I crack a smile and slowly inch my face to his, and he looks at me. A small smirk appears on his face as I smile back at him and place my lips on his. Our mouths are moving slowly against each other, savoring the connection, but before we can go any further, the door bursts open.

I whip my face to the door and see Grace walking into the room. My eyes widen when I see two more people standing in the back of her. It's Grayson and the girl I saw in the cafeteria. _What?_

"Good morning, Ana. Christian. How are you feeling dear?" she says kindly.

I stand up straight and frown. The girl's eyes widen when she sees me. "Hey, it's you. Why did you run off on me earlier?" she frowns as she walks over to me.

Grace and Grayson stare at us confused. Christian is equally confused when he stares at me.

"How do you know, Ana babe?" Grayson walks over to her and wraps his arm around her waist.

"I bumped into her in the cafeteria. She said she wasn't hungry, but I could tell she was lying," she cocks her eyebrow at me. I blush and look down at my feet. _Ugh. Now, everyone knows._

"Hold up, can someone please tell me what is going on? And what are you all doing here?" Christian says exhaustedly.

"I was on duty last night when they brought you in dear. I saw Anastasia, and she told me what happened. I came back last night to check on you and you two were asleep, so I wanted to return this morning to see how you were doing. By the way, Elliot was discharged early this morning. He is okay, just a little sore," Grace says while she fluffs Christian's pillow for him causing him to stare at her dumbfounded.

I stare at her in awe. She is fixing Christian's bed sheets and making sure he is comfortable. I stifle a giggle when she fixes his messy hair. He just stares at her like she is an alien who came here from a different planet. _She is being loving and sincere. Something a loving mother would do for her injured son._

I bite my lip and shake my head at the thought. She is extra loving towards him all of a sudden, and I am confused at her expression that clouds her face. Pain and a loving warmth are mixed into her expression. I look over at Grayson and the mystery women, and he is staring at them like it's the most natural thing for her to do. And the girl is chuckling.

Grayson breaks the awkward moment, "I came here to take my mother out for breakfast since she has been at the hospital all night. She told me what happened. I hope you are doing well considering the circumstances?" he frowns.

Christian shakes his head as if he came out of a trance. "I am fine, thanks."

"I'm sorry. This is my girlfriend, Priscilla. She wanted to see my mother since she has been busy lately. I guess you two have met each other already?" Grayson smirks causing me to blush once more.

"Yes, it explains a lot," she crosses her arms over her chest and cocks her eyebrow at me. I blush brighter shade of pink and nod pathetically.

I look at her, and she gives me a wink and an expression that says she gets it. I smile at the ease I feel now. There not judging me or our situation and I appreciate that.

The nurse suddenly enters the room, and she is holding a plate of food. My mouth waters and my stupid stomach growls again causing everyone in the room to chuckle. I blush again. _Ugh. Stop blushing!_

"Here you go, Miss. Steele," she smiles knowingly.

"Thank you," I say gratefully.

She smiles and takes hold of Christian's chart and reads it over. "Everything looks good so far. You may be able to go home tomorrow if things keep going on this route," she informs Christian.

He nods as she leaves the room. Grace smiles at him lovingly. I stuff the food into my mouth and savor the taste. I am being extremely rude eating in front of all of them, but I can't help it. I'm hungry, and I haven't eaten anything since yesterday. It's then I remember that I need to take my prenatal vitamin. I get up and get my purse from the chair that is sitting by Christian's bedside and take out the pills, and take one with water. Grace smiles as she sits down on the chair that my purse was sitting on.

I go back to my food and finish. Grayson speaks with a sense of authority, "I would like to talk with Christian and Ana alone, please."

I frown as does Grace and Priscilla. He kisses her on the cheek and she nods at him. She turns to me and smiles. "It was nice to meet you. I am sure we will be seeing more of each other," she says.

"Yeah, sure. It was nice to meet you too," I frown but smile.

Grace gets up, and gives Christian a kiss on the cheek and rubs his cheek tenderly causing Christian to stare at her dumbfounded once again. "I will be back later to check on you sweet boy," she says sweetly.

He nods at her in awe. I stare at her astounded when she squeezes my shoulder softly while passing me to walk out of the door with Priscilla. _Okay, what the heck?_

"So, I wanted to reiterate my earlier offer of employment at Grey Construction," he says smoothly while unbuttoning his suit jacket and sitting down on the chair that Grace vacated.

Christian sighs and adjusts his injured shoulder that is still in the sling. I squirm in my seat when I finish eating the food.

"I told you I would think about it," he murmurs uncomfortably.

"Yes, well, that was a while ago, and I sure thought that I would get that phone call by now, but I haven't heard from you. I understand your circumstances. I have been where you have been before I became a Grey. I know about being prideful and stubborn. I know that you are not going to take my offer, but I want you to reconsider," he nods.

Christian tenses and stares at him impassively. I stare at them nervously, wondering what he is going to say. The room is silent for God knows how long before the door suddenly opens again revealing a short brown-haired woman with a clipboard and glasses.

"I'm sorry. Is this a bad time?" she says looking around the room.

"No," Christian blurts out, probably grateful that she broke the awkward tension.

"Very well. I am one of the hospital administrators here, and I have some forms for you to fill out," she says politely.

"Okay," Christian says confused.

"The doctor admitted you to an inpatient status, and these are the insurance forms for you to fill out. This one is for your insurance-," she explains, but Grayson cuts her off when Christian's eyes bug out of his head when she says insurance.

"I will take those forms, ma'am," He says firmly causing her to frown.

"Sir?" she says confused.

"Can you give us a minute, please?" Grayson asks.

"Of course. I will leave these here for you. Just page the nurse once you have these filled out," she says politely and leaves the room.

Christian sighs heavily and I close my eyes. I forgot about not having insurance. How are we going to pay these bills? Christian had surgery. These charges are going to be through the roof. I start to squirm at the thought of the uncertainty. Grayson brings me out of my panic.

"I have a proposition for you. I will pay all of these medical bills if you accept my offer of employment," he says. He is sitting in the chair with his legs crossed and his hand resting on his chin.

Christian and I stare at each other dumbfounded. Why would he pay the medical bills? Why is he doing this? "Yo-you would do that?" I stutter.

Grayson is looking at me with a small smile. He simply says, "Yes."

Christian stares at his shoulder. A frown is mirroring his brow. I stare at him, waiting for his answer.

"What do you say, Christian?" Grayson asks again.

Christian slowly looks over at Grayson for a minute before he suddenly blinks. He looks over at me and slowly lowers his eyes to my stomach and simply stares for a moment before he takes a deep breath. Before I know what is happening, he blurts out, "Okay."

* * *

 _ **AN: Well, there you have it. Christian agreed, I know it was about time. ;)**_

 ** _Next chapter there will be a time jump, and another character will be added into the story. Can anyone guess who that might be?_**

 ** _Thank you for all the reviews and followers. Again, excuse any mistakes about the hospital policy or insurance purposes. It is probably not how it goes, but I wrote it this way to fit into the story._**

 ** _Until next time._**


	20. Chapter 19

_**Two Months Later**_

 _ **January 2009**_

 _ **Ana**_

I am standing in our new 700sq ft. Apartment, trying to slowly unpack what little we carted over here from the shelter. It has been a crazy few months since Christian was discharged from the hospital. The doctor told me that Christian would need some rehabilitation for his shoulder, so Grayson referred us to a Physical Therapist that he is still seeing once a week. Since his surgery and his therapy, Christian wasn't able to start his new job right away. About a week ago, the physical therapist told Christian that he could start light work, and as long as he didn't aggravate his shoulder, then it would be fine to start his normal daily activities.

Two days ago, Christian started his first real job. Since his shoulder injury, Grayson has put him on equipment duty instead of cleanup and loading various materials. So far, Christian likes the work and the crew that he works alongside.

After about a week of Christian being discharged, Grayson wanted us to move out of the shelter and into an apartment, but since Christian took the job, he didn't want to take advantage of him and the situation. Christian wanted to work and save money before we got an apartment of our own. That didn't work out because he wasn't able to start work as earlier as he wanted, so Grayson finally put his foot down and told us that he was getting us an apartment. Christian and I reluctantly agreed since I was getting farther along in my pregnancy and Christian didn't want us to stay in the shelter any longer than we had too. We needed to have a place of our own, and we needed to get things ready for the baby.

Grayson wanted us to move into a townhome nearest to his house, but Christian put his foot down and told him that he needed to do this on his own. He already owned Grayson and the Grey's so much; he didn't want any more handouts. Grayson reluctantly agreed but put his _own_ foot down and told us that he would pay the application fee, and the first month's rent and help with furnishing the apartment. Since Christian wasn't getting paid for another two weeks, he agreed.

We found a one-bedroom apartment about twelve minutes from downtown Detroit for only $500 a month. The apartment is not much, but it's in a safer neighborhood, and it is quiet. This is our first apartment together, our first home and I couldn't ask for anything better.

Right now, a one-bedroom apartment is all we can afford so it was decided that we are going to put the baby in our room until we are able to save more money and get a bigger place.

The Grey's also have stepped up and helped us with furnishing the apartment along with Grayson. Grace surprised us with a shopping spree at a local furniture shop. To say we were surprised would be a huge understatement. We were blown away that I couldn't stop crying and thanking them for being so kind. They hardly know us, and they are willing to help out two strangers, and I couldn't be more grateful. Grace and Carrick have been incredibly supportive of our situation that they were willing to let us stay with them at their home, but we politely declined their offer, of course. I like them, but we hardly know each other, and it would just be too awkward if we moved in with them. Elliot is a part of that family, and it doesn't make sense for two friends of his to live at his girlfriend's parents' house.

Elliot is also doing well since the shooting. His bruises healed within a few weeks, and he is now back to his old funny self. Addison and Elliot are still going strong, and the incident has brought them closer together. In fact, Addison asked him to move in with her since it wasn't safe at his old apartment. He agreed, and they have been blissfully happy ever since.

The gang which was involved in the shooting were sentenced to prison a few days after it all happened. Those four guys were not the sharpest tools in the shed since they called out each other's names during the beating, so Elliot and Christian were able to identify all of them. The guy who shot Christian were convicted of assault with a deadly weapon and received ten years in prison. The other three were sentenced to five years in prison for assault and battery. Carrick handled the legal side of it all Pro Bono, which we were also thankful for.

Carrick and Grace have been acting strangely these last few months. Every time I have seen Carrick, he stares at Christian with remorse. I still frown when I think about why he always stare at Christian as if it was his fault that he was shot. Grace still has been super attentive to Christian, and it's starting to overwhelm him. When we were still at the shelter, she came by multiple times a week to see how his shoulder was holding up even though he kept telling her that is was not necessary for her to drop by all the time. Grace kept refusing and said she was a doctor and insisted that she check up on him to make sure there were no signs of infection. I know she was lying because I could see it in her eyes that she was hiding something from us.

 _Like you, Ana._ My subconscious sneers at me. I shake my head at that. I am not hiding something from him. I just have my suspicions that's all. More and more I have been seeing the uncanny resemblance between Christian and Carrick. The way they both run their hands through their hair when they are nervous or upset. The way they both scrunch up their nose when they are concentrating, and most of all their facial features are so similar to each other. They both have that unique copper-colored hair, straight nose and they even have the same sharpness to their jaw. Heck, they even stand the same way.

I stop unpacking the boxes and stand up straight, looking out of the apartment window and squint my eyes. I put one hand on my back and the other on my small baby bump. _Can they be related? Is it even possible? Carrick doesn't look like the military type._

I remember when we were little, that our mothers told us what little they knew about our biological fathers. All they said is that they were both in the same military unit, and it was a one-night sort of thing. They woke up, and they were gone. I believe they said that they were going on deployment the day after they met. So it is possible that Carrick was the man that Ella met that night. _Carrick still could be his uncle or something?_

I shake my head at that. I have a strong feeling that Carrick _is_ his father. I know I can't prove it, but why else would Grace and Carrick help us out the way they have been doing? I know people could still be kind and selfless and help out people they don't know, but how do you explain their facial expressions? How do you explain Grace's weird behavior towards Christian when he was in the hospital?

I rub my temples as all the thoughts run through my head. I need to let it go, but I feel guilty for not telling Christian of my suspicions. I do believe he has his own suspicions, but every time he sees me trying to bring it up, he snaps and tells me he doesn't want to talk about the Grey's. He tells me that he just feels guilty for taking so much from them. He knows it's the right thing to do because of the baby, but I can tell he knows that Carrick is somehow related to him. He is just too stubborn to think more about it or actually do something about it, so I leave it alone. It doesn't make me feel any less guilty about keeping my suspicions from him, though.

I sigh and rub my bump as I feel a small flutter. I giggle at the sensation. Today is our second ultrasound, and we get to find out the sex of the baby since I am now nineteen weeks _. I am so excited!_ Christian is getting off early today for my appointment at 3:30. I look at the oven clock and see that it is 2:30 so Christian should be here any minute now.

I leave the boxes for later and head into the bedroom to change. Since the little clothes that I had before are too small, Grace took me maternity shopping last week. Another thing that the Grey's insisted they do for us. I had felt guilty for spending all their money on clothes, but Grace wouldn't hear of it. She wanted to do something for us, and I needed new clothes, and I could tell that it would mean a lot to her if I accepted, so I did.

Grace picked out tons of cute maternity jeans, sweater dresses, leggings, jacket's, shoes, boots and some new bras and panties. She must have picked out fifty outfits before I told her that I didn't need any more than ten. I would have been fine with five outfits, but she told me I needed several to last me through the different stages of pregnancy. _Surely not fifty, though?_ She waved me away and handed the cashier her credit card after I tried on all of the outfits. I felt uncomfortable spending all that money, especially someone else's money.

I stare at the pile of neatly folded clothes that are laying on our new queen bed. I blow out a breath and look around our new bedroom. The furniture and décor are all new. Our bed frame is made up of a light brown upholstery, white and brown accent pillows and a matching comforter set. Underneath our bed, is a huge white and brown patterned rug. There are two bedside tables on either side of the bed with a lamp each. The master bedroom is decorated with several abstract pictures and little knickknacks on the windowsill.

I smile and jump a little when I stare at our new apartment. I still can't believe that I am standing here. I never thought our life would bring us to this point. I always thought that we would still be living on the streets with nowhere to go. But now, we are here, with a roof over our heads, food in the cabinets, and soon-to-be money in our new bank account.

Life couldn't be better than right now. I fall back on our bed and sigh happily. My smile widens when I hear the front door open. I squeal and jump up when I hear Christian shout out, _"Honey, I'm home!_

I jog out of the room and see Christian shutting the front door. He smiles at me when I run into his arms.

"Miss me?" he laughs.

"I always miss you. How was work?" I giggle. _God, it's strange to say that._

"Good," he chuckles. He is wearing dirty blue jeans, a black long-sleeved shirt that says _Grey Construction_ in white lettering on the front and brown boots. I let him go, so he can take off his coat, and he sets it on the kitchen table.

"I see this place is coming along?" he smiles at the living room.

"It is. I am almost finished unpacking," I nod happily as I look around the room with him.

We are both smiling broadly at the apartment. A dark gray couch with yellow and gray accent pillows is placed along the back wall with a glass coffee table, and a black lamp stands in the corner by the window. A white and gray patterned rug sits under the couch and coffee table, and dark gray window curtains hang by the window. We didn't want to go overboard, even though they told us to pick whatever we wanted. _It's perfect._

"Are you about ready? We need to go before we are late," Christian says while looking at his watch.

"Oh, yes. I'll be five minutes," I hold up five fingers and he chuckles as I run into the bedroom.

I change from my comfy flower patterned maternity pajama pants, to another flower patterned dress with long sleeves. I put on some black leggings and my black ankle boots. I comb my hair back and put on my new black maternity coat that Grace picked out for me.

I walk out of the bedroom and see that Christian has put his jacket back on. He is looking at his phone. I check my purse and make sure I have mine. Since we needed a phone so the Grey's can contact us, they bought us both new flip phones and _pay as you go_ plan that is included. Another thing that we are internally grateful for.

"You ready?" he says while putting the phone in his coat pocket.

"Yep, ready," I smile and follow him out of the door. He turns and locks the door, and we descend the stairs since we live on the second floor.

We walk a half of a block before we reach the bus stop and thankfully we don't have to wait in the cold for long. The bus stops near the curb, and we both step on and take the twenty-minute drive to the clinic.

I am giddy, and practically jumping out of my seat as we finally get to our stop, which is a block away from the clinic. I am so excited to find out what we are having finally. We get off and walk for a few minutes before we get the shock of our lives. There standing in the front of the clinic is the whole Grey family. Christian and I stop dead in our tracks when we both spot them. I gasp loudly as this gets Grace's attention. She beams and walks towards us. Carrick and the rest of the family follow her lead.

"Ana, darling," she hugs me.

"Grace. What are you all doing here?" I ask still dumbfounded.

"Elliot told us that you are finding out what you are having today, so we all decided to take off of work a little early, so we could be here for you and celebrate," she claps her hands in glee.

My lip trembles and my eyes turn glassy at the sweet gesture. I can't believe that they took time out of their day to come see us. I am truly touched that they are here.

"Christian, honey," Grace kisses his cheek. He is still staring wide-eyed at them before he comes too and nods his head at Grace.

Carrick comes up to me and gives me a warm hug. He kisses my cheek and again offers up his congratulations. I smile up at him and thank him. Elliot comes up and gives me a bear hug. Addison gives me a bone crushing hug as well and tells me that she loves my outfit. I giggle and give her another embrace. When we part, I spot Grayson and Priscilla holding hands and a tall blonde hair women standing next to them. I frown. _Who is that?_

"Ana, you look lovely," Grayson kisses my cheek causing me to blush.

"Thank you," I smile.

"How are you?" Priscilla smiles as she hugs me.

"I am good. Excited to find out what we are having," I beam up at her. She and I have become really good friends these last two months. We talk at least once a week, and she even took me shopping a few weeks ago. We had a blast, and it did feel good to hang out with someone other than Elliot and Christian.

Addison has also become a good friend. She is always so bubbly and fun to be around. I can see why Elliot likes her so much. She is one of those friends who you always love to spend time with. A friend who always has your back. My thoughts go to Mia and Ethan. We haven't seen them in a while. They have been in and out of the shelter for a month, and I never know where they are. When we do see them, they always have fake smiles plastered on their faces, and when I ask them what is wrong, they always blow me off. I miss them. I wish they could stay with us in our new apartment, but with the new baby coming, we don't have the room. We did give them our phone numbers so they could call us anytime they needed us. I really want them and the kids to be safe.

Priscilla brings me out of my thoughts. "I want you to meet my mother. Mom, this is Ana and Christian," She introduces us to the mystery women.

I look up at her, and she walks over to us and smiles warmly. She is an older version of Priscilla. Her blonde bob is curled loosely around her head. She has on a pair of black high-waisted suit pants. A black suit jacket and a pristine white blouse with pointed high-heeled shoes. She is also wearing a long gray, black buttoned coat with a broad belt that loops around the waist.

"Elena Lincoln. It's lovely to meet you, finally," she smiles while shaking my hand. She has a nice firm handshake.

"It's nice to meet you too," I smile but wonder why Priscilla brought her mother along when we haven't even met yet. She shakes Christian's hand and he gives her a tight smile.

She seems really nice, though. I look over at Christian and Carrick is trying to talk with him, but Christian is looking everywhere but at him. I frown. Carrick looks anxious about something. Christian suddenly looks over at me and gestures for me to walk into the clinic. Christian tells the family that we need to go inside, which they all agree and follow us into the building.

The front desk clerk takes my name, and we all sit down and chat. Grace informs us that Jack couldn't make it since he had an urgent meeting to attend. Christian mumbles under his breath that he couldn't care less. Me either. I hate that prick. We only have seen him once since we met him at the party, and all he does is look down at us like we are some parasites that are not worth his time. He is always going on and on about his company, and how he built it on his own. He also talks nonstop about his _lovely girlfriend._

If I have to hear one more; _She is a goddess,_ I think I am going to poke my own eye out with a fork. How anyone can put up with that ungrateful bastard is beyond me.

"Anastasia Steele?" a nurse suddenly calls out my name.

"That's me," I raise my hand. I frown in confusion when I see Carrick and Grace tense and stare at each strangely. _Okaaaay._

"Good luck, Ana Banana," Elliot waves as we both make our way to the back room.

I wave at everyone when they reciprocate. We get to the room and answer the usual questions the nurse asks about my pregnancy so far. We get to the ultrasound, and I lay down on the bed. She gets everything ready when the doctor walks into the room. We greet each other, and he starts the ultrasound. He does the measurements and tells us that the baby looks good, and has a strong heartbeat causing us both to shed a tear.

"Do you want to know the sex?" he asks.

"Yes," we both say at once. I squeeze Christian's hand, and he gives me a kiss on the forehead. _This is it!_

He smiles and looks at the monitor carefully. "Okay. Let's see. Ah, here we go. You see this…that is sticking out between the legs?" We both nod and my eyes go wide as does Christian's when he says, "Well, Congratulations. You have a healthy baby boy."

* * *

 _ **AN: Just wanted to clarify that Elena will be a good character in this story. I know some would think she would have some hidden agenda, but rest assured, she wont. Also, her backstory is different, and she is not into BDSM and yes, she is married to Linc and Priscilla is their biological daughter. I just want to write something different to her character.**_

 _ **Thank you all for the reviews/PM's and followers.**_

 _ **Pinterest is updated with tons of pins for this chapter.**_

 ** _Till next time. Happy Thanksgiving!_**


	21. Chapter 20

_**Ana**_

"And for you, Ma'am?" the waiter politely asks.

I frantically look over the expensive menu and try to find what I want to eat. Grace and Carrick invited us for dinner after we told all of them the good news. Christian and I have never been to a real restaurant before. I don't know what to order, even though Grace told us we could get anything we want.

"Can I have another minute, please?" I look up from the menu and tell the waiter. He nods and goes around the table.

Christian rubs my back as I smile at him. He smiles and goes back to looking at his menu. I go back to mine, and browse through the entire selection.

* * *

 _STARTERS_

 _Clams $14_

 _Prosciutto, chiles, garlic, grilled bread $16_

 _Ceviche: lime, red onion, cilantro, chilies $16_

 _Chilled Lobster: crème fraîche, avocado, grapefruit mkt. $24_

 _Oysters: half dozen with mignonette $14_

 _Beef Tartare: avocado, soft poached egg $12 pp._

 _Charcuterie: a selection of house cured meats $12._

 _Beef Cheek Pierogies: horseradish & mushrooms $16._

 _Crispy Veal Sweetbreads: creamed leeks, mushrooms, blue cheese $10._

 _Roasted Marrow: sea salt, oregano, capers & chilies (please allow 12 minutes) $10_

* * *

 _SALADS_

 _Caesar: romaine, radicchio, parmigiano reggiano $10_

 _Chickpea: arugula, kalamata olive, cucumber, tomato, red onion $12_

 _Beet Salad: watercress, walnut, orange, goat cheese $14_

 _Apple: bibb lettuce, gala apples, proscuitto, gorgonzola $12_

* * *

 _ENTRESS_

 _Roast Beast:_ _cassoulet, pork sausage mkt._

 _Roasted Chicken: heirloom beans, cippolini, fingerling potato $28_

 _Short Rib: carrot, mushroom, port braised cipollini, celeriac $38_

 _Braised Lamb Shank: eggplant, orange, pine nuts, fennel $38_

 _Halibut: haricot vert, fennel, brown butter, watercress $34_

 _Pan Seared Scallops: celery root, chanterelles, celery leaves $32_

 _Seafood Pasta: lobster, scallops, clams, garlic, tomato $34_

 _Grilled Salmon: olive tapenade, chickpea, cucumber $34_

 _Gnocchi: seasonal vegetables $28_

* * *

 _STEAKS & CHOPS_

 _Filet Mignon with sea salt & olive oil OR crab béarnaise $50-54_

 _Smoked Pork Chop: creamy polenta, pickled chilies, bbq onions $32_

 _Dry Aged NY Strip: smoked mushroom conserva $54_

 _Dry Aged Ribeye: preserved lemon, granna padano, smoked garlic $55_

 _Dry Aged Porterhouse for two: marbled potato, caramelized onion, zip sauce_

 _(please allow 40+ minutes) $130_

* * *

 _SIDES_

 _Rosemary Fries $6_

 _Whipped Potatoes $5_

 _Spinach & Feta Au Gratin $12_

 _Mac & Cheese $10_

 _Brussels Sprouts & Walnuts $10_

 _Wild Mushrooms $12_

 _Creamy Polenta $6_

 _Smashed Potatoes $10_

 _Mixed Green Bean $10_

* * *

 _Holy Moly! These prices are outrageous!_ _They want us to order whatever we want?_ The prices are too over the top. _Over fifty dollars for a steak?_ I am worried that I am going to order something that is too expensive. I lean over and whisper into Christian's ear. "Everything is too expensive."

He sighs and kisses me on the cheek. "Baby, get what you want. They want to celebrate. Please, don't worry about the prices," he says quietly.

I bit my lip and look at everyone who is busy telling the waiter what they want. Carrick orders some _Oysters_ and the _Ceviche_ for the starters and a two bottles of _Reichsrat Von Buhl, Maria Schneider, Jazz, Riesling, Pfalz 2014_ for the table. He orders the _Dry Aged Porterhouse_ for him and Grace.

Grayson orders the _Filet Mignon with crab béarnaise, Spinach & Feta Au Gratin, and the Creamy polenta. _

Priscilla orders the _Halibut with the Apple Salad._ Her mother; Elena orders the _Caesar Salad, Grilled Salmon, and the Wild Mushrooms._

Addison orders the _Pan Seared Scallops, Apple Salad, and Rosemary Fries._ Elliot orders himself a _Dry Aged NY Strip Steak with Whipped Potatoes and Mac & Cheese. _

The waiter carefully picks up the menus, and that gives me the chance to decide what I am going to order for myself.

* * *

 _Awarded Detroit's Restaurant of the Year (2009)_

I spot in gray calligraphy at the top of the menu. _Wow, must be a really good place._

I take a deep breath. I pick the _Caesar salad, Roasted Chicken_ for my entrée, _Smashed Potatoes and the Mixed Green Beans_ for my sides. My mouth waters at the description of all the entrees. It's hard to choose and I don't even know half of what these things are. I have never eaten something so… _extravagant_ in my life.

"Have you decided what you want, ma'am?" the waiter walks over to me.

I nod and tell him my order. He nods and asks Christian want he wants. He orders the _Dry Aged Ribeye with Brussels Sprouts & Walnuts, and Mac & Cheese. _We both order a glass of water. Since I am pregnant, I can't have alcohol and Christian doesn't want to drink the wine that everyone else is drinking.

I look around the table once more and they are all drinking the wine and talking and laughing with each other. They seem so comfortable around one another and I am sitting over here being uncomfortable. Not because the Grey's are making me uncomfortable, but because I am in a place where rich people come to dine. Men and women are sitting around the various tables with cocktail dresses and expensive jewelry. The men are all wearing suits or slacks with ties.

I look over at Christian, and he too looks uncomfortable. His hand is tightly resting on my leg while his eyes are scanning the restaurant with a sullen expression. I can tell he is uncomfortable because he glances at his work clothes a few times then at the men in expensive suits. Even Elliot is wearing slacks and a clean button up shirt. I am in a dress, but still. We don't fit in here, and it's discouraging. It makes me feel inadequate, and I can tell it's making Christian feel the same.

 _What are we doing here? This is not us. We are not allowed to be happy and dine with all of these wealthy people._ My shoulders slump and I look at Christian. His head turns towards me, and he gives me a small smile. _Yeah, he is thinking the same thing._

I think Grace picks up on our change in moods because she starts up a conversation. "So, a boy! How exciting," her smile is infectious.

"I know. We are excited," I rub my baby bump, and everyone is staring at us with matching smiles.

"So, Christian. How is the new job? Grayson treating you well?" Carrick asks with a hint of concern in his voice.

"Yes, I like the job so far. The crew is great, and so is Grayson," Christian nods.

"I'm glad," Carrick smiles tightly at him.

Christian nods and looks around the room again. The tension is suddenly thick. Grace smiles at me tightly and drinks from her wine glass. I pick up my glass of water a take a sip. The table is quiet, and everyone is trying to figure out what to say. To say this is awkward would be a massive understatement.

"So, Christian. Uh, I was wondering about your last name. You said it was Gray?" Carrick says with a frown.

Christian freezes and I nearly spit out my water that I had in my mouth causing me to choke. I start to cough, and this brings Christian back to earth. He hurriedly pats my back, and everyone stares at me with concern. I smile and say, "I'm fine. Just went down the wrong pipe."

Christian rubs my bump, and I smile. "I'm okay," I reassure him, and he nods.

I see Grace all of a sudden jab Carrick in the ribs from across the table. I frown and stare at them. _What was that for?_

"Christian?" Carrick probes again.

Christian looks up at him and frowns. "What?"

"Your last name? Gray was it?" Carrick asks looking uncomfortable. I bite my lip and look down. _Where is he going with this?_

Christian sighs and nods his head. "Yes, it is Gray," he clears his throat.

Grayson stares at him impassively before his eyes move away. He brings one of his hands up to his face and strokes his chin in deep thought. His other hand is playing with his empty wine glass.

"Interesting. Do you spell Gray with an E or an A?" Priscilla frowns while staring at Christian.

"I spell it with an E. I never knew my father. My mother's last name was Smith. I decided I didn't want that last name, so I changed my name to Grey due to my eyes being the color gray. Weird? Probably. I guess it is just a coincidence we have the same last name," he murmurs.

Carrick and Grace deflate a little on that information. Christian didn't want to be reminded of his mother so when he turned eighteen, the foster home that we lived in before we left the system, helped him legally changed his last name. He wanted a new identity, so we both came up with the name since his eyes were such a unique shade of gray.

I have to admit, that it is a huge coincidence, but I can't shake the earlier feeling of Carrick and Christian's similar features. I think they have the same ideas the way they are both staring at me. Grayson lets his emotions slip from time to time, and when they do, you can tell he knows something. The other times, he is so hard to read due to his poker face that he probably mastered throughout the years of running your own successful business. Addison is oblivious to any of it. She is busy quietly chatting with Elliot to know what is going on around her. Sometimes she doesn't have a care in the world, and I'd like to know what that feels like. Especially now.

"Pardon me if this comes off as rude, but did your biological mother know who your father was?" Elena jumps in and asks suddenly causing me to quietly gasp in surprise. My eyes widen as does Christian's.

"Mom!" Priscilla exclaims while closing her eyes in humiliation.

"I'm sorry dear. That did come off as harsh and inappropriate. I'm sorry, don't mind me," Elena looks embarrassed. I am too. That was a little rude, but I can see that she is embarrassed and is regretful because of her facial expression.

I am surprised when Christian answers her question anyway. "My mother had a one-time thing with a passing soldier. He left to go on deployment the day after they had sex. That is all I know," he says tightly.

Elena turns beet red and shakily take a sip of her wine while the others stare at him dumbfounded. My mouth is hanging open, and I stare at him in shock. He never outright tells anybody about his past, especially about our mothers. Christian chugs his water down and says he is going to the bathroom. He kisses my forehead and walks away hastily.

I look back at everyone at the table, and they are staring at me and squirming uncomfortably. I try to give them a smile, but it comes out more of a grimace. I too shakily pick up my glass and take small sips. _How the heck did we get here?_

Two waiters come up to the table and break the deafening silence. Elliot speaks up. "Looks great. Let's chow down," he rubs his hands together, tucks his napkin inside of his shirt and picks up his silverware, ready to dig into his food. I giggle and the rest of the table chuckles, causes the tension to break that only Elliot could pull off at such an awkward moment.

The waiter places my dish in front of me, and the smell is to die for. The presentation of the sides and chicken is immaculate. It looks too beautiful to eat. I take my heavy red napkin and place it on my lap and dig into the delicious green beans first. I moan and savor the taste as it hits my taste buds.

Everyone digs into their meal, and after about five minutes, I have eaten half of my food on the plate. I am a pig right now, but I can't help it. The food is delicious. Christian suddenly returns to the table and gives me a kiss on the cheek. I smile at him and stare into this eyes to try and convey to him that I am here for him. He nods and smiles. He digs into his food while Carrick sneaks glances at him while he eats.

The conversation flows easily for the rest of the meal. No more awkward questions from anyone, much to my relief. After everyone is finished eating, the waiters take our empty plates away and ask if anyone wants dessert. Addison is the only one that says she wants something. Grace and Carrick order some coffee while everyone else finishes the rest of the expensive bottle of wine.

"Sweetheart, are you sure you don't want any dessert? It's your special day. You just get anything you want," Grace nods at the dessert menu. I bit my lip and glance over the selections once more. The food was delicious, and I am still a little hungry. Maybe…

I look over at Christian and nods in encouragement. His copper-colored hair flopping down on his forehead and his gray eyes study me with warmth and love. I smile and nod my head at him.

I look over the menu. A quote on top of the menu grabs my attention before I see the selections.

 _Life is uncertain. Eat dessert first_

— _Ernestine Ulmer_

Well, that is true. Life is unpredictable. Our life has certainly been. I shake my head. I don't want to go there right now. Things are looking up, and I shouldn't dwell on the negative or what could happen in the future.

* * *

 _DESSERT_

 _Bread Pudding: candied bacon, whiskey caramel, walnut, maple bourbon ice cream $11._

 _French Toast Crème Brulee: brown butter rum pain perdu $11._

 _Double Layer Pumpkin Cheesecake: pepita granola, caramelized white chocolate ganache $11._

 _The Nutty Professor: peanut butter, milk chocolate bavarian, banana caramel $11_

 _The Bar: chocolate, malt marshmallow, pretzel, smoked salt, whiskey sauce $12._

 _Caramel Apple Churros: salted caramel roasted apples, toffee chunk ice cream (please allow 10+ minutes) $12._

 _House Made Sorbet: $10_

* * *

The dessert menu looks incredible. The _Double Layer Pumpkin Cheesecake_ sounds to die for! I've never had cheesecake before. The only dessert I have ever had was some plain vanilla ice cream and a day old chocolate cake. I think I am going to go with the cheesecake.

"I will have the _Bread Pudding_ , please," Mia orders her dessert first.

The waiter nods and takes her menu. He walks over to me and asks what I would like. "I would like the _Double Layer Pumpkin Cheesecake,_ Please. Oh! And a glass of milk," I say shyly.

"Yes, ma'am, excellent choice," He smiles as he takes my menu from my hands. I lick my lips and thank him. Christian tries not to laugh. I giggle slightly and take a sip of my water.

Grace stares at us lovingly and takes a sip of her coffee. "Ana. Christian. We are having a benefit next weekend, and Carrick and I wanted to see if you would like to join us?" She waves to everyone as they nod and smile in our direction. _A benefit?_

"Oh, um, that was sweet of you. What is the benefit for?" I look over at Christian, uncertain if he even wants to go. He is staring at Grace with a frown.

"It is to help raise money for families in crisis. We have the benefit at our house every year. Carrick and I started hosting it for the last three years. We would love it if you two would join us," she explains with a pleading smile.

I turn my eyes to Christian once more, and he sighs. He turns to me and asks if I want to go. I bite my lip and think about it. It sounds like a good cause. Helping families in need. Would it be like the party that they had a while back? Will there be important people there? What about clothes? Is there a dress code? That is when it hits me that I don't have anything fancy to wear.

"What is the dress code?" I ask with a bout of uncertainty.

She looks at me as her eyes soften. "Dresses and tuxes are what everyone usually wears, but don't worry. We will find you something. I would love to take you shopping," she says in glee.

 _Shopping? Oh, no_. They have done so much for us already. I don't want them to bother with more clothes. I am about to protest when Priscilla see's my expression and jumps in. "Every girl needs that _little black dress._ I will go with you. I am in need of a new gown, and I know just the place," she smiles and winks at me.

I smile hesitantly and nod at them without even asking if Christian is okay with that. I look over at him, and he is smiling at me with one eyebrow raised.

"Wonderful! Carrick and I will pick you up on Saturday," Grace beams at us. I smile back and notice everyone doing the same.

Our dessert comes, and Addison, and I dig in while everyone else discusses the benefit. The cheesecake melts in my mouth, and I moan in ecstasy at the taste. Everyone laughs, and I blush when I realize that I have moaned too loud.

Christian chuckles and kisses my hair as I scarf down the rest of my dessert.

* * *

"It was wonderful to see you again, dear. I will call you next week to go shopping," she says while giving me a hug goodbye.

We are standing outside the restaurant _Michal Symon's Roast,_ which is located inside of _The Westin Book Cadillac_ hotel. The restaurant was excellent, and I am glad we had the chance to experience eating at such an expensive place. Even though it is not that big of a deal, eating out at a restaurant, but it is a big deal to Christian and me since we have never had the chance to experience this type of restaurant and food.

"Thank you," I say softly.

Everyone else says goodbye as Addison throws herself at me and gives me a bear hug. I laugh and hug her back. "Careful babe. She is pregnant you know," Elliot chuckles as he places his hand on her arm to mover her back a little.

"Oh, sorry," she says guiltily.

"It's fine. I am okay," I reassure her.

She smiles and kisses both my cheeks. "I'll see you next week for our shopping extravaganza!" she claps her hands and jumps up and down. I laugh and nod at her enthusiasm.

Elliot will be driving us home in Addison's car. She will be driving home with her parents since they are both staying at Grace and Carrick's house for the weekend.

"It was nice to meet you dear. Again, I'm sorry about my earlier questions," again; she looks embarrassed as her cheeks turn a light shade of pink.

Christian puts an arm around my waist and gives her a tight smile. "Nice to meet you as well, Mrs. Lincoln," he says tightly.

She gives him a small smile and walks over to Grace. Elena explained during dinner that she and Grace are really good friends. They met through her husband, Richard since he is one of the top surgeons at the hospital where Grace works at as a Pediatrician. Elena owns her own chain of upscale beauty salons, _Serenity_ , in downtown Detroit. She invited me to have a hair trim and beauty treatments for the benefit next weekend, and at first, I politely declined her offer. With Addison and Priscilla pleading with me to go with them, I relented and accepted her offer. Her question was inappropriate, but she seems like a nice person nonetheless, so I am going to give her a chance.

Elena also told me that she and her husband are good friends and partners with our doctor at the clinic. Richard, her husband donates money to _Planned Parenthood_ throughout the year. Elena was visiting him to invite him and his wife to the benefit next weekend and was seeing how the clinic was doing since they are a big benefactor for the clinics here in Detroit. Her husband, was out of town this weekend for a medical conference. Anyway, she ran into the Grey's, and that is why Elena was there when Christian and I showed up today. _Talk about a small world._

"Alright, you two. Ready to go?" Elliot jumps up and down on the spot to warm up. I laugh at his expression of being frozen.

We nod and follow him to Addison's white BMW. We get inside and put on our seatbelts. I am in the front seat while Christian is in the back. He wanted me to sit up front where the vents were. _Always thinking of me first._

"Dude, you need to start thinking about getting your driver's license," Elliot says while driving.

"What for?" Christian frowns. I too frown at that.

"You're working now. So, you need a car to get to and from work. Also, banana has a bun in the oven. What happens when she goes into labor? Need a car and a license to get her to the hospital, bro," he nods at me and glances at Christian from the rearview mirror.

I bite my lip and turn around in my seat and look at him. He sighs and leans his head back on the headrest for a second before looking back at Elliot.

"How much would that be, though?" Christian asks him.

"You need to study for the driver's test. Get your permit, then when you have that, take the actual driving test, and then if you pass, they will give you the license. Don't worry about how much it will cost. I can help," he explains.

"No. I will pay for it myself. I am tired of other people paying for me," Christian hisses.

Elliot sighs and shakes his head. "Man, you need to stop with that pride bullshit. There is no harm in letting people help you out. You just started to get on your feet, and you won't have enough money for a license since you need to get everything else first. I want to do this for you, so let me!" he says exasperated.

Christian sighs frustrated as he runs his hand through his hair. I give him a small smile from upfront. Elliot has a point and sometimes you need to ask for help if you need it.

"Why are they helping us so much, Elliot? They don't even know us, and now they got me a job, an apartment, clothes, furniture, and fancy ass food at an upscale restaurant!" he says getting more frustrated the more he rants.

Elliot sighs equally frustrated. "Man, they are just nice people. They want to help you out, so what? Just because they are doing all of this for two people who _obviously_ need help, doesn't mean they have some hidden agenda," He shakes his head while huffing.

Christian sighs and mumbles under his breath. I didn't hear what he said, but I can see that he is thinking about his suspicions about Carrick.

"Just let me pay for it. Look into it and let me know of the cost. I have nothing else to pay for. I have a good job, and I make decent money, and I don't have to pay for rent, so let me put my money to good use," Elliot pleads with him. My eyes soften at his sweet gesture as I place my hand on his arm to let him know that I appreciate his help. He looks over at me and gives me a wink.

"Fine. Thanks, Elliot. And stop winking at my women," he growls.

Elliot laughs out loud and shakes his head. His blonde curls bouncing over his head, and his dimples pop out while he continues to laugh. I giggle and look over at Christian while he tries to glare at him, but fails miserably.

"Bro, I knew the jealous, possessive, Christian would make an appearance. He is never too far away," he sings causing me to giggle harder. _Aint' that the truth?_

Christian chuckles and shakes his head as we continue to drive to our new apartment while laughing and talking about everything and nothing.

* * *

 _ **AN: Next chapter will be the benefit.**_

 _ **Thanks for all the reviews and followers. I appreciate all of the feedback, I really do.**_

 ** _The menu in this chapter is the actual menu for Roast, the restaurant in Detroit._**

 _ **Till next time.**_


	22. Chapter 21

_**Six Days Later**_

 _ **Ana**_

"Yes, God, Christian, Yes!" I moan loudly as I close my eyes in pleasure. I open my eyes to see his head is thrown back, his mouth drops open in ecstasy and his hands gripping my hips as I ride him harder and harder.

"Fuck, baby," he moans and grips my hips harder. Soon we are both moaning out our release. I fall on top of his sweaty chest carefully, so I don't put too much pressure on my pregnant belly.

I close my eyes in utter exhaustion. This is the first time in a week and a half that we have had sex. I woke up today to the sounds of soft moaning coming from Christian's side of the bed. I looked over at him, and he was clearly having a very nice dream with his obvious erection straining against the sheets. I licked my lips as the familiar throbbing in my core caused me to lean over, take the covers off his body, and slowly lowered myself onto his massive erection. When his eyes flew open, and the look of absolute ecstasy came over his face, I knew that he was suffering more than he let on, which made me even more guilty.

I thought that pregnancy would have increased my sex drive, as some would say, but in my case, it has done the opposite it seems. Before my morning sickness hit earlier in my pregnancy, Christian and I would have sex constantly. Well, as much as we could while we lived in the shelter. We would always find the time to be intimate, but it seemed that all my energy had been non-existent here lately.

I hate it. I don't know what it is, but I thought that after my morning sickness lessened, I would have more energy and that meant more sex. I can tell that it is affecting Christian and I hate being the one to frustrate him. He keeps telling me that he understands because I am pregnant, but I can still tell that he has become more and more disappointed each day when we go to sleep without making love.

Today was the first day in about two weeks that I have been in the mood to have sex. I have been having cravings randomly while he was at work, but they soon went away when he had gotten home. I love Christian, and I am extremely attracted to him, and I love having alone time with him, but all I seem to want to do is sleep. I do have some bouts of nausea every once in a while and that alone does not help the situation.

I close my eyes in frustration. _What the hell is wrong with me?_ Christian's breathing returns to normal as he runs his hand down my back and soon his fingers find my sex. He slowly starts to rub me and he groans. I bite my lip and close my eyes tightly. I know he wants to go again, and I am tired, but I don't want to let him down. It has been too long, and I know that he will want to make love to me again, I just don't know if I can.

"Oh, baby. God, I missed you," he groans in my ear as his thumb circled my clitoris. He inserts a single finger into my sex. I whimper as he gently moves me on my back and kisses down from my neck to my bump as he slowly thrusts his finger in and out of my sex. "You're so tight. Baby, I need you again," he moans as he takes his other hand and starts fisting himself. His erection is now hard and thick once again. I look down at him and bite my lip as he stares at me with a pleading expression. He needs me again, and I can't deny him.

I nod, and he moans, and slowly he replaces his finger with his cock. He moans and his head is thrown back in pleasure as he slowly thrusts inside of me. He places his hands on my hips and starts pushing a little harder. I put my arms over my head and clench the sheets. I close my eyes and try to let myself go. I try to enjoy the feeling of him inside of me, but I am having trouble getting back in the mood. _He needs this._ I think to myself as I try not to whimper.

"You are so beautiful," he groans and my eyes fly open in shock. He stares at me with so much love it nearly knocks the wind right out of me. Tears fill my eyes as he softly runs his hand down my bump and slows down his thrusts, making love to me. He is making me feel so beautiful, it makes me want to cry. He is touching me so lovingly, so tenderly that I start to weep into my arms that are still thrown over my head.

"Baby, what's wrong?" he frowns in concern and stops moving his hips.

I put my hands over my face and continue to weep. I understand why I have not been in the mood here recently. It's all so clear now.

I don't feel attractive. I feel fat, and I don't feel good about myself. I know it is stupid, and I should feel beautiful because I am carrying a baby, our miracle, but I can't help but be self-conscious of my new body. I don't like Christian seeing me naked. I don't like him seeing the forming stretch marks that are over my protruding stomach. Sometimes I feel gross and fat, and I don't want Christian to see how much my body has changed. It's stupid to feel this way because he always lets me know how beautiful I am. How much he loves me.

"Hey, Hey, Hey," he coos and pulls out of me causing me to wince. He climbs behind me and spoons me. He holds me in his arms while tears roll down my cheeks. I feel so stupid right now. _Stupid hormones._

"Why are you crying? I hate it when you cry, baby. Did I hurt you? Did I pressure you? Please, baby, tell me," he begs as he runs his hand soothingly down my bump.

I take a deep breath and try to calm down. I wipe my face with the end of the pillow case and gently turn around, so I am facing Christian. He is staring at me wide-eyed. He immediately places his hand on my cheek and stares at me with concern.

"I'm sorry. Something just hit me all of the sudden," I sniffle and give him a small smile.

He frowns and caresses my cheek with his thumb. "What hit you, baby?"

"Why I didn't want to have sex," I whisper, and his eyes go wide.

"Did I do something, Ana? I don't care if we don't have sex. Your pregnant, and you are tired. I don't expect you to want to have sex all the time. I don't want to pressure you, and if that is why-," he panics and starts to ramble, so I cut him off by placing my index finger on his lips.

"You didn't do anything, Christian. It's all me and my stupid insecurities. I just don't feel sexy, desirable. I don't like my changing body, and I feel fat. I know it's stupid and childish, but I can't help but think that if you see my body, you would be disgusted and that has somehow put me off of having sex," I explain and blush out of embarrassment.

He sighs and chuckles in disbelief. He takes my head in his hands and stares at me in the eyes and firmly says, "Babe, I could never be disgusted with you. I love you. You are carrying my child, and you are not fat. I hate that you thought that about yourself. You are beautiful, more than desirable. Baby, you make me absolutely _crazy_. I want you twenty-four-seven because you're sexy as _fuck_. More now, because you are pregnant. I could come in my pants just by looking at you! That is how sexy and beautiful you are," he places his forehead on mine and seductively whispers the last part. I smile brightly at his words and giggle. He laughs with me and gives me a chaste kiss.

"Thank you. I know you always tell me how beautiful I am, and I don't know why I was acting that way. I know you love me. I love you too. More and more every day," I murmur against his lips.

He runs his nose down mine and kisses me again. Desire runs through my body immediately when he deepens the kiss, and we get lost in each other again, and everything is back to normal.

* * *

It is the day of the benefit, and I am super nervous. Grace, Addison, and Priscilla came over to pick me up this morning to go shopping for dresses. We drove for a while until we arrived at the Birmingham shopping district.

All the stores and shops were expensive, which made me uncomfortable. They already bought me clothes, as well as for Christian, and they are going to spend another fortune on formal dresses. I hated looking at the price tags, because every dress that I saw and liked, they were all over $2,000. I know they were going to be expensive based on the Grey's wealth and where they shopped, but it was still intimidating and uncomfortable to think of them buying me more things that I didn't think I deserved.

After trying on numerous dresses at several pregnancy boutiques, I finally found a dress that was perfect and was also loudly approved by Priscilla and Addison. The dress is a long silk royal blue gown with a black sash that ties around the top of my bump. The top of the dress curves around my collarbone, and the sleeves lay on the top of my shoulders. It's simple and classic, and I immediately fell in love with it.

Priscilla picked out a black dress. It has long lace sleeves and a high slit that ends in the middle of the thigh. Addison's dress is similar to Priscilla's, but hers has capped sleeves, and the dress is emerald green with rhinestones and a similar high slit. Grace's dress is light pink and beautiful, with silver flower pattern of beads that are placed on her waist and the shoulders of the dress.

After I had picked out my dress, Priscilla dragged me to the lingerie section. I blushed bright red when she picked out a black and light pink lace pantie set. The bra is strapless, and the set came with stockings and garter straps that hook onto the panties. She also grabbed a few more lingerie sets and a few lace boudoir sets in different colors. I called her earlier and told her about my insecurities since she has become an excellent friend, and I wanted her advice. Lingerie and getting comfortable in my own skin would build my confidence, and when I tried on all the selections she picked out, they made me feel sexy and desirable. I beamed at myself in the mirror and Priscilla gave me a thumbs up and a wink when I came out of the dressing room.

Our last stop of the day was shoe shopping, which didn't take as long as dress shopping did. I picked out some Jimmy Choo vintage navy lace heels. Grace and Priscilla picked out similar light pink heels that have extravagant diamonds on the back of the heel. Addison picked out a pair of black velvet strappy stilettos.

After our shopping extravaganza, as Addison calls it, we spent the remainder of the afternoon at Elena's salon, _Serenity_ , getting pampered and our hair and nails done for the benefit. I choose a light pink nail polish, and we all got our hair cut, washed and styled. I went with simple curls for my hairstyle. Addison straighten her hair, Priscilla got an elegant updo, and Grace's hair is in a chignon. Elena was polite and outgoing, and overall really sweet and funny. We all talked and laughed while eating lunch before we arrived at Grace and Carrick's house.

Elliot, Grayson, and Carrick took Christian out today as well to get him a tux for tonight. I am excited to see him and ask how his day was. As we pulled up the driveway, we see numerous cars and vans parked by the three car garage. Crews are carrying and setting up for the benefit tonight that is taking place in the backyard. I see four men rolling out a red carpet that goes to the driveway to the backyard. Huge white tents are being set up by the water that is near the side of the Grey's property.

Two people who I haven't seen before, walk over to us when we get out of the car. They open the trunk and help take out all of our purchases and proceeds to walk inside of the house with them. I am grateful not to be carrying those garment bags since they are heavy. I notice that Carrick's black Mercedes is missing from the driveway, so the men are still out shopping for tuxes.

We all head into the house, and it is even more breathtaking the last time I was here. Grace sees me yawn and smiles warmly at me. She tells me that I can take a nap before the benefit if I like, and I take her up on her offer. I say goodbye to Addison and Priscilla and tell them I will see them later. They give me a hug and walk off somewhere to help with the setting up.

Grace guides me to an upstairs guest room. The room is breathtaking. The room is painted in a soft beige, a white queen bed with matching white and beige sheets. There is a white chaise lounge sitting in front of the white upholstered bed. There is even a big diamond chandelier hanging from the ceiling that gives the room an elegant touch.

Grace smiles and rubs my back and points across the room and says, "The bathroom is through that door there. The phone is by the bedside. Just press _two_ if you need anything. The system will automatically put you through to my office, which I will probably be in there until it's time to get ready for the benefit. If I don't answer then press _four_ , it will direct you to the housekeeper, and she will get a hold of me," she explains.

"It's fine, Grace. I will be alright. Christian will probably be here soon. What time do we need to come downstairs to get ready?"

"The benefit starts at eight," she looks at her expensive gold watch, "It's three right now, so you have plenty of time to rest before tonight," she kisses my cheek and walks out and closes the door softly behind her.

I sigh and smile a little bit as I place my purse and my purple hat that I was wearing earlier to keep my head warm, on the bed. I moan at the sight of it. _I'm so tired, and that bed looks heavenly._

I smile and rub my bump as I walk over to the bathroom and marvel at its beauty. My eyes widen, and I gasp at how beautiful it is. The walls are painted in a soft blue; that matches the cabinets that are exquisitely crafted and refurbished wood. It looks to be an antique. The floor is white marble with different types of white and black designs. _God, it even has a chandelier in here!_

What dominates the bathroom though is the huge oval-shaped bathtub that is sitting in front of the floor to ceiling windows. _It's gorgeous in here! And this is only the guest bathroom! I wonder what every other bathroom looks like? Are they this extravagant?_ I think to myself as I slowly bend over, and take off my knee length gray suede boots and walk towards the mirror. I smile as I look at my appearance. I am wearing one of my new maternity outfits. A long cowl neck maternity sweater, and black leggings. I love this outfit since it's loose and comfy. Perfect for shopping.

I look down at the sink and stare in awe at everything. There are several different types of soaps, shampoos, lotions, conditioners, perfumes, and anything you could need is placed in order by the sink as well as fluffy white towels rolled up in a brown woven basket.

I turn around and stare at the tub in longing. I bite my lip and decide to take a warm bath. I know I won't be able to take a hot bath since I am pregnant, but as long as it isn't too hot, the doctor said it would be okay. We don't have a bathtub at our apartment so I couldn't take one, but since there is one here, I want to make use of it. I have never been in a bathtub before, only stall type showers, and the shower-tub combination at our apartment.

I don't want to tie up my hair since I just had it curled, so I decide to leave it down and just throw my hair over the edge of the tub when I lay down. I try to start the tub, but it's confusing since three different hoses are attached to the thing.

After some time trying to find out how to turn the thing on, the water comes on and I set it to lukewarm. While the bath fills up, I take off my clothes and find some soothing bath oil by the sink. I pour in some, and the room is immediately filled with the smell of lavender. I inhale and exhale the lovely fragrance. I step into the water when the water is half full. I sigh in content as I pull my hair over the tub and lay back and relax. _This is amazing._

I turn my head over to the window and pull the crisp white curtain back and look out of the window. I see the water off into the distance and various crews still setting up for the party. I watch them finish setting up the tents and heaters for a few minutes and then place the curtain back as I lean my head back on the pillow that is placed on the side of the tub. I close my eyes and rub my bump as I relax.

It's so quiet and peaceful that I nearly doze off. I am startled awake by a noise of the bathroom door suddenly opening and I instinctively hide my breasts with my hands and slide down a little when the door is fully opened. I hold my breath and stare at the tub wide-eyed.

"Ana?" It's Christian. I let out a breath and sit up and see him looking at me with concerned eyes. "What are you doing in the tub?" he walks in and closes the door behind him. He hurriedly walks over to me and crouches down to my level. He looks as good as he did this morning. He is wearing blue jeans, a black long-sleeved shirt, brown suede boots and a long black coat with a gray scarf around his neck. His copper-colored hair is a curly mess on top of his head. _He cut his hair. It was longer this morning_.

"You cut your hair," I smile and run my wet hand through his hair.

He rolls his eyes and shakes his head and takes my hand off of his head. "Babe, you scared me for a second there. I called out your name three times, and you didn't answer."

"Sorry. I guess I was falling asleep and didn't hear you," I shrug and play with his hair again.

"You know you shouldn't fall asleep in the tub. You could hurt yourself and the baby," he sighs and rubs my stomach. He stands up and starts taking his clothes off. I lick my lips as his firm abs come into view. He smirks as he spots me checking him out. He walks to the end of the tub and gestures to me to move forward. I do as he says and he climbs in behind me. He pulls me gently to his chest, and I rest against him. He places both of his strong arms on the tub, and I put mine on his thighs. I rub small circles on his muscular legs as we lay there in a peaceful silence.

I break the silence. "How was your day out shopping with the boys?"

He sighs and hesitates. "It was different. I never put on a tux before," he murmurs.

I turn my head to the side and see that he is staring off into space. "Did you get one?"

"Yeah. It's in the closet in the bedroom. Did you get your dress? I see that you got your hair done," he plays with a curl that is thrown over my shoulder as I nod my head at his question but frown at him for changing the subject. I know he doesn't want to talk about the time he spent with Carrick. The situation is still weird for him. "Let's get out. We don't want you to ruin your hair for tonight," he says.

I turn around and kiss him and then get up, and he helps me out of the tub. We both dry off and walk into the bedroom hand in hand. We walk over to the bed and he throws the covers off and takes his towel off that is wrapped around his waist. He points to my side of the bed. "Let's take a nap. You look tired, and I could use one myself."

He gets into bed as I take off my towel. I climb on the bed and lay on my side, and Christian does the same. He cups my cheek and stares into my eyes. I smile and lean towards him and kiss him. The kiss turns into a heavy make out session that causes the familiar ache between my legs. I pull back, and we are both panting. I climb on top of Christian, and his hands immediately go to my hips as I slide onto his erection. We both moan and spend our afternoon in bed making up for lost time.

* * *

"You look gorgeous, Ana!" Addison squeals as I carefully walk down the stairs. _These heels are already hurting my feet._

The whole Grey family are standing at the bottom of the stairs, waiting for us. I smile shyly and thank her. Everyone is standing there staring at me with smiles on their faces. My smile drops when I see Jack sneering at us while standing in the background. I look over at the girl on his arm. This must be the _goddess_ of a girlfriend. She is staring at me curiously.

She is a little shorter than me, with brown hair that is pulled into an elegant bun on the base of her neck. The majority of her dress is made up of a sheer black material. It's formed to fit her curves, and then the bottom half of the dress has two black sashes that flare out to make the dress a mermaid design. It's unique. That's for sure.

Her eyes are a bright blue, similar to my color, but a little bit darker. I have to admit that she is pretty. Her makeup is flawless. Her eyes are a smoky eye making her blue pop, and her lips are a glossy red that are now dropped open as she sees Christian. I grit my teeth when her eyes widen at the sight of my man. I inwardly roll my eyes at her expression. Christian is gorgeous, especially when he is dressed up the way he is now.

I am holding onto his arm as he carefully walks me down the stairs. I look over at him and look him over once more. His black tux fits him perfectly. The black bow tie makes him look sophisticated. I almost jumped his bones when I saw the sight of him, and as he saw me in my dress, he wanted to do the same.

We reach the stairs, and the _goddess_ still hasn't taken her eyes off of my man. Before I know what I am doing, I place my hand on Christian's chest and lean up and give him a kiss on the lips. He peers down at me and smirks when I pull back after a minute. He knows what I am doing. That was a little dramatic, but you have to do what you have to do to claim what is yours.

I glance over at Jack and his girlfriend, and he is glaring at her and pulling her off to the side. Grayson looks over at them and sighs when Jack is angrily whispering to her. He looks pissed, and she is wringing her hands together nervously while nodding at him. She looks guilty, but after a second, she puts on a smile, which is obviously fake, and takes his arm when he offers it to her. He huffs and leads her outside.

"You look lovely dear," Grace kisses my cheek.

"Thank you, so do you," I smile.

"Ana," Carrick walks over to me and kisses my cheek as well. He looks handsome in his black tux.

They all take turns and greet us before we all follow Grace and Carrick outside. When we walk out of the house, we are greeted with many glowing lanterns that lead us into the great white tent. Guests are walking into the entrance off by the water. I can hear classical music and murmurs of guests laughs coming from the dancefloor that is placed at the end of the tent.

We all walk into the white tent, and I am once again overwhelmed at how beautiful everything looks. There are about fifty round tables that are scattered around the area. The tables have crisp white tablecloths, white china plates, silverware and a mixture of yellow, orange and brown flower centerpieces. The top of the white tent is elegantly decorated with a huge silver chandelier that is hanging in the middle of the tent and a string of white fairy lights that connect to the midst of the light.

Christian and I follow Grayson and Priscilla to one of the middle tables. There are about eight seats to a table. Priscilla sits down on her designated seat as Grayson continues to stand and talk business with a few associates. Elliot, Addison, Grace and Carrick went off to mingle with the guests before dinner is served.

"Sit down guys," Priscilla waves at the seats and smiles.

Christian pulls out my chair, and I carefully sit down. Since it is winter time, several large heaters are placed on every entrance and exit to the tent, making our surroundings a perfect temperature. Christian sits down next to me and lays his arm on the back of my chair and looks around. There are close to 300 people in attendance tonight, and there are only half of them here. Some are dancing to the band that is playing at the end of the tent, and some are standing around mingling with other guests while they hold glasses of champagne and wine.

Women and men are dressed to the nines, and I am grateful that the Grey's took us shopping earlier. To say we are both overwhelmed would be an understatement. I bite my lip and look around the room in apprehension. I don't know what were supposed to do or how to act. We have never been to anything like this before, and it's new and frightening, to say the least.

I look over at Christian, and he is scanning the room with a frown. He looks uncomfortable as well, and I don't blame him. The guests are all standing and talking in groups of three or four. Priscilla got up from the table a few minutes ago to stand next to Grayson who is talking to four businessmen in black tuxes. Priscilla is laughing and talking with the wives next to the men. They are both in their element. They are both comfortable by being here, and it's starting to make me more uncomfortable.

We sit there for about twenty minutes with both of us in silence. I look in front of me and see a glass of water next to the china plates. I quickly grab the glass and chug it down. My hands shake nervously, and I am starting to break out in a sweat. I don't know what is wrong with me right now. Suddenly, I want to be anywhere but here.

Christian see's my shaking hands and looks at me concerned. "Are you okay baby?"

"Yeah, just a bit overwhelmed," I murmur and place the glass back on the table, almost dropping it in the process.

He sighs and leans over and whispers in my ear, "Did you want to go outside?"

My breath hitches when I see Jack and his girlfriend walk over to our table with a smirk. I nod quickly and get up, and Christian follows. Before we can leave, Jack speaks up. "Going so soon? I wanted to introduce my girlfriend, Leila" He smirks, and I tense. _Ugh. I don't want to deal with this asshole._

I know that he is going to try to make us more uncomfortable than we already are, and I don't think I can handle that right now. "We just need some fresh air," I say quickly trying to get away from him. Christian glares at him which causes Jack to chuckle darkly.

"What is the matter? Getting overwhelmed?" he chuckles again and takes a drink of his champagne. His girlfriend raises an eyebrow at me. Her blood red nails are clutching her own champagne flute.

"Mind your own business," Christian hisses at him. Jack just laughs, and Leila, his girlfriend smirks. _I need to get out of here._

"I am in my childhood home. I think I am entitled to do whatever I want. Don't you think?" He sneers at Christian.

"Shut the fuck up," Christian grits through his teeth.

For some stupid reason, my eyes start to water and my bottom lip trembles. I don't know why I am feeling like this. I never cared what this asshole thought of us, but now it's starting to get to me. I feel like I am not supposed to be here. I feel like an idiot for agreeing to come here.

I look at my surroundings once more. Women and men are now staring in our direction. A few impeccably dressed women are staring at me in judgment. They whisper to each other and start to giggle while looking at my dress. I start to shake lightly and my cheeks turn pink in embarrassment. Two older men in suits walk past us, and I whimper when I hear them say, _"They must be the charity case…"_

Christian is glaring at him when Jack suddenly laughs out loud. He apparently heard the two passing men talk about us. His girlfriend starts to giggle along with him. I look around the room, frantically trying to find Priscilla or Addison but they are nowhere in sight.

Things couldn't get any worse, until Jack suddenly speaks as the music stops and the crowd of people quiets down. Carrick is about to give his speech on stage.

"What are you going to do about it, homeless boy? I don't know why the fuck you are here anyway. I don't know why my father wants to get to know you, two homeless idiots," he continues to laugh causing everyone to stop what they are doing and stare over at us.

I gape at him and the tears that I tried so hard to keep in, flow down my cheeks as I look around the room in absolute embarrassment. Christian is pale and is standing stock still.

I see Carrick frantically pushing people out of the way so he can get to us. His face shows horror and concern for Christian. Grayson is glaring at Jack while he stomps over to his brother, while Priscilla is staring at me in concern. She has her dress in both of her hands, so she doesn't trip and jogs over to me.

Elliot suddenly comes over and pushes Jack and gets in his face. "What the hell is your problem asshole!" he hisses.

Priscilla reaches me and pulls me into her arms. I bury my head into her neck and continue to weep. She rubs my back as she coos in my ear. "Shh, it's okay. It's okay."

I am so humiliated. I have never felt this embarrassed before. I need to get out of here. I want to go home. I pick my head up and try to wipe my eyes. Priscilla tries to lead me out of the tent. I think she sees that I need to get out of there. I stop and realize that I need to get Christian. Priscilla frowns and looks over her shoulder at the scene where we just left.

Grace is trying to reprimand Jack as he and Elliot are glaring at each other. Addison is shaking her head at Jack and spots us looking at them, and she hurriedly walks over to us and holds onto my hand for support.

Christian is still standing at the exact same spot. He is staring impassively at Jack and Elliot while Carrick is trying to get his attention. Grayson looks pissed off as he is talking adamantly to a few men who are dressed in worker outfits. I guess he is trying to get them to clear out the tent while everyone is staring at the scene in front of them while whispering and pointing at all of us in apprehension and curiosity. They don't know what is going on.

Grace's firmly high voice echoes suddenly throughout the tent. "Jackson Trevelyan Grey! What has gotten into you? That was uncalled for young man."

Jack takes his eyes away from Elliot, who is still glaring at him and looks at Grace. "Oh, please, mother. What were you thinking inviting those two deadbeats here? They don't belong here. They don't belong in _our_ family! _My family_!" he yells causing everyone to stare at us wide eyed.

Grace stares at Jack in horror as well as Carrick. Christian is still staring blankly at him. I am to staring wide-eyed at Jack, and Addison is trying to pull me out of the tent, but I keep my feet planted where they are. I can't leave Christian.

"You hear that asshole? You don't get to come in here and take _my_ father away from me. He is mine! Not yours!" he yells as he charges over to Christian. I stare in horror when Jack punches Christian in the face causing everyone to gasp and Christian to fall to the floor. I scream and run over to him.

Priscilla gently holds me back as Carrick picks up Christian from the floor. "That is enough!" Carrick screams at Jack who is now panting while his hands are balled into fists by his side. Jack's girlfriend slowly backs up into the crowd.

Christian chuckles darkly and spits the blood from his mouth onto the floor. His jaw is bruised, and his lip is already starting to swell. "What is the matter Jackie boy? You pissed off that daddy dearest is my biological father and not yours?" Christian sneers and my eyes go wide as does Grace and Carrick's. _Oh, My God. He knows?_

Christian smirks and looks over at Carrick who is as white as a sheet. Grace has a hand to her mouth and still staring wide-eyed at Christian. Addison is looking at Christian confused and Priscilla is also frowning. Grayson looks down and runs a hand through this blonde hair. Elliot shakes his head in disbelief and stares off into the distance.

Jack is fuming. The crowd is silent, waiting to see what is going to happen next. Priscilla slowly let's go of me, and I walk over to Christian and put a hand on his shoulder. He doesn't turn to me; all he does is stare at Jack with a smug smile.

Christian turns his head and looks at Carrick who hesitantly peaks up at him. After a few moments of heavy tension and complete silence, Christian hisses, "Father. I think it's time for us to have a chat."

* * *

 _ **AN: Longest chapter yet.**_

 _ **Thank you for all the reviews/followers/PM's.**_

 _ **If you haven't already, I started a new story called Doubled Devotion, if you are interested, please check it out. Its different and It's not everyone's cup of tea, and I guess it's the closest thing I will get to having CG with someone else. I am a huge C &A fan, but I wanted to try something different. I know some readers passed on that one, which is okay, thanks for checking it out anyway. **_

_**Pinterest is update with tons of pics for this chapter. Again, thanks for reading and reviewing.**_

 _ **Till next time.**_


	23. Chapter 22

_**Ana**_

" _Father. I think it's time for us to have a chat."_

Silence.

We all stand in complete silence while Jack is staring at Christian like he wants to murder him. Christian is staring at Carrick impassively. Carrick is opening and closing his mouth several times, but no words leave his lips. He doesn't know what to say. Nobody does. We all just stand there and stare at both of them in incredulity.

 _What are they going to do?_

Grace finally takes her hand away from her mouth and swallows hard before she looks around the crowd. Some are looking at her uncomfortably while some do not take their eyes away from the two men who are still glaring at each other.

Grace suddenly straightens up and marches to the front of the tent. Her high-heels are the only thing that you can hear, other than the crickets and the gentle waves of the lake. Addison and Priscilla's eyes follow her all the way to the stage where Grace walks up the stairs and firmly taps the microphone trying to get everyone's attention.

Grayson sees Grace on stage and walks over in that direction. Grace's voice suddenly comes over the loud speakers. "Everyone, can I have your attention, please!" Everyone looks over at the stage except for Jack, Christian, and Carrick. I take his hand in mine and give it a squeeze to let him know I am here. He doesn't take his eyes off Carrick but gently squeezes my hand back.

"The benefit will be postponed until further notice. As you can see, we have a family emergency. Would everyone please exit the tent. We will have the date of the benefit rescheduled and mailed out to you all. Thank you," Grace says firmly as she walks off the stage and over to the exit.

The crowd slowly walks over in her direction. Most of them giving Grace a goodbye and a handshake. She doesn't smile but shakes their hand and nods at them. Some stare at her with sympathy as they pass her.

Carrick finally takes his eyes off of Christian and me and gestures to the exit. "Yes, we need to talk," Carrick clears his throat.

"There is nothing to talk about, father. This fucker is not your son! I am!" Jake yells again and points to his chest.

Carrick sighs and runs his hand through his hair. "Jack, you need to calm down. You ruined tonight when it was supposed to help raise money for people who need it. You made your point, now I think it's time to go home and let me talk with them," he points to us.

"I am not going anywhere. What on earth do you need to speak to him about? You don't actually believe that prick do you?" Jack glares at Christian who glares right back at him.

"Of course he believes me, you dick," Christian sneers. Jack storms over to him, and Christian moves me in the back of him while Carrick throws himself in front of Christian.

"That is enough! You need to go home, son. This is between Christian and me. You have done enough, now leave," Carrick demands while pointing to the exit.

Jack glares at Carrick and then glares at Christian who is still behind Carrick. Christian smirks causing Jack to growl at him and then he says, "This is not over." He storms out of the tent and walks past Grace as she shakes her head with disapproval at his retreating back.

"Bring it on, Jackie boy," Christian gets the last work in. I shake my head at Christian. Jack stops walking and stands there with his back to us for a minute, then continues to storm out of the tent.

"Christian, was that really necessary?" I pull on his arm to try to get him to look at me.

Christian finally looks over at me and narrows his eyes. "Yes, it was necessary, Anastasia. I am tired of that prick having the last word. This time, I had the last word," he growls.

"Christian," I shake my head at him in disapproval. "When did you find out?" I ask him curiously. I thought he had his suspicions, but I never thought that he knew for sure.

He stares at me while Carrick and Grace talk quietly by the exit. I never noticed him leave.

Grayson and Priscilla are standing next to them also talking quietly to each other. Elliot is standing by the stage. He has his arms around Addison, and she is laying her head on his shoulder. She is staring up at the chandelier. I can't make out her expression, but you can tell that she is curious about what is going on. This is a pretty big bomb that was dropped on her.

"When did you?" he counters back. I squirm uncomfortably under his penetrating gaze. I don't say anything because I don't know how he is feeling _. Is he mad at me?_ _Of, course he is. You didn't tell him that you knew!_

"I…I had my suspicions," I whisper and look away.

He doesn't say anything for a while, so I take a chance and peek up at him, and he is still staring at me. His face doesn't show how he is feeling. He's staring at me impassively. _Oh no. I knew that he was going to hate me for not telling him. Nice going, Ana._

Finally, he nods his head and walks towards me. He cups my face, and my eyes find his. "Did you think I would be angry with you?" he rubs my cheek with this thumb. _Is he not mad?_

I look into his gray eyes and bite my lip in trepidation. "Yes. I'm sorry I didn't tell you. It's just that every time I wanted to say something, you changed the subject and-," I start to explain but I am interrupted by Carrick. We both turn our heads to the exit of the tent where they all are staring at us expectantly.

"Are you ready to have that talk?" he says hesitantly.

Christian looks back to me and kisses my head. "Yes. I think it is overdue," he nods and takes my hand and leads me forward. We pass everyone who is staring at us with dread. _This is bad._

Christian ignores their identical stares and walks up the red carpet that leads to the back of the house.

He walks through the back door, and I look over my shoulder, and they are all following us. All the cars of the guests are gone, and the clean-up crews are heading to the tent to pack up the chairs and tables. _This was a waste. How the hell did Jack find out about Christian?_

I keep asking myself this question as Christian leads me to the living room sofa. We walk down the few steps to the round couch in the middle of the living room. Christian pulls me to his side, and we wait for the others to join us.

After a few seconds, they make their way to the couch, and we all sit-down and sit there once again in silence. You could literally cut the tension with a knife.

Christian sighs in annoyance and runs his hand through his hair. I can tell he has had enough of the silence. "Let's get this started, shall we?" he pointedly asks Carrick who nods at him. He leans forward and rubs his hands together and puts his head down. His bow-tie is undone and is hanging from his neck. Grace rubs his back and gives me a small smile.

"How did he know? Christian asks.

"I don't know. Jack must have had a background check done on you, and figured it out. He owns his own business, and he has background checks done on everyone he meets," Carrick sighs.

"When did you find out about me?" Christian asks next after he clenches his jaw on the last question.

Before Carrick can say anything, Addison speaks up. "Wait up. I want to know something first. Is it true daddy? Is Christian really your biological son?" She stands up and places her hands on her hips.

"Addison," Grace stands up and tries to get her to sit down, but Addison shakes her head.

"No mom, I want to know. I want to know if you have been lying to us about him," Addison nearly screams at Carrick.

Carrick stands up and runs his hands down his suit pants, "I didn't lie about him, honey. I found out about Christian, and I didn't know how to tell him or you kids," he murmurs and runs his hand through his hair and looks around the room.

"How long have you known?" Addison stares at him in astonishment.

Christian sits up straight and stares at Carrick intently. I can tell this is the question he really wants to know.

Carrick stares at Addison for a minute before he nearly whispers, "A little over two months ago."

Addison closes her eyes, and I see a tear roll down her cheek. I shake my head and clutch the side of my head. _I can't believe he knew this long and didn't say anything._

"Why? Why didn't you say something sooner? Why didn't you tell us?" she points to herself. "Your kids have the right to know that they have another brother!" she nearly yells at him, and he flinches.

"Addison," he tries to explain, but she is not having it. She shakes her head back and forth frantically while more tears run down her face.

"I can't believe you. I can't believe you didn't say anything. I can't believe this shit," she says in disbelief as she picks up the tail of her dress and walks away from him. Elliot stands up and takes her into his arms. "Take me away from here. I need to get out of here," she lets Elliot go and wipes her eyes.

"Sweetheart, wait," Carrick walks forward but stops when Addison raises her hand and shakes her head.

"No, dad. I don't want to hear your excuses. I can't even look at you right now," she turns her back to him and then she turns to Christian and me. "I'm sorry, Christian," her voice cracks as she stares at Christian.

He looks at her and gives her a small smile. "It's not your fault. You didn't know."

She nods her head in disbelief and wipes her eyes once more. Grayson and Priscilla are sitting on the couch hand in hand. They are staring at Addison in sympathy.

Addison gives us a watery smile before she again picks up her dress and turns around. She looks at Grayson suspiciously. He stares at her with round eyes. Her shoulders slump, and she looks down at the ground before looking back up to her brother. "Did you know?" she demands.

Grayson closes his eyes, looks down and stays quiet. Priscilla frowns at him and lets his hand go. Addison takes his silence as a confirmation that he did know. Christian stands up, and his mouth drops open. I put my head in my hands and sigh. _They all knew. What the hell?_

"Oh, my God. I can't believe this. Elliot get me out of here," she hisses and walks up the small stairs and stomps out of the room. Elliot follows her while Grace tries to call out for her to stop, but she ignores her, and a minute later we hear the front door slam shut causing us to jump.

Priscilla throws her hands up and stands up from the couch. "I think that I need to leave as well. This is a family matter. Grayson, I will call you, later," she says and Grayson whips his head to her and then frowns at her cold tone.

Priscilla walks over to me and gives me a hug while she whispers in my ear that she will call me later. She squeezes Christian's shoulder as she walks away and Grayson stands up in surprise. She shakes her head at him while he tries to pull her back.

Grayson sighs and lets her walk around him. She leaves soon after, shutting the door more quietly.

Christian chuckles in incredulity at the turn of events. "Two months. So, that means you knew I was your son when I had my accident? Didn't you?" he snaps.

"Yes," Carrick says in shame while he sits down and puts his head in his hands.

"I can't believe this shit! Now, I know why you were acting that way towards me," he points to Grace. "How could you both keep your mouth shut? For two fucking months!" Christian snaps loudly and I jump.

Grayson puts his hands on his hips and stares at the ground. Nobody says anything, and I rub my bump and take a deep breath.

Carrick stands up and takes off his jacket and throws it on the couch and swallow hard as he looks at a still fuming Christian. Carrick finally starts explaining.

"I found out the night you were hurt. When I saw you the first time at the party," he stops and swallows hard. He starts talking again after a few seconds of silence.

"I didn't know about you. I didn't know I had fathered a child all those years ago. I met your mother on leave when I was still in the Marines. After I had met your mother, I went on deployment and then served my time. I never heard from your mom after our night together. We didn't give each other our last names or phone numbers, so I never knew she had gotten pregnant."

"If I had known about you…," he stops and closes his eyes. Christian stares at him with a blank expression. I look between them afraid at what he is going to say next. Grayson is still looking at the ground, and Grace is sitting on the couch with tears in her eyes.

Carrick opens his eyes and continues. "When I first saw you at the party, I knew you were somehow related to me. My brother Craig has two children, but he would have told me that he had another child. My sister is unable to have children of her own, and at that moment, I knew that you were my son. After your accident, I had a private detective dig up some information, and a day later, I received a picture of you and your mother. I also have your foster information, your birth certificate, the police report of when your mom overdosed, and your stay at the hospital when you were four as well as Ana's."

My mouth is hanging open by the time he finishes. I cannot believe he knew all this time and didn't say anything. He had all of Christian's information and never said anything to him. _Where the hell do we go from here? What do we do with this information?_

Carrick continues when Christian doesn't say anything. "I know that I should have said something when I found out, but I was scared. I didn't know how you were going to react. You are all grown up, and I know that I can't take back it back, but I am trying. I was trying to make up the time I lost. I missed seeing you grow up. I _hated_ to see you living in that shelter. I _hated_ seeing you with nothing. I wanted to provide for you. I wanted to do the things that I should have done when you were born." Carrick wipes his eyes and places his hand over his eyes.

Christian suddenly snorts. "So what you treated us like a charity case? You make your other son give me a job. For what? Because you felt sorry for me?" he shakes his head in disbelief.

I rub my bump and bite my lip when it starts to tremble. I hate what those men said about us too. _Did Carrick tell everybody at the party? Is that why those people were talking about us behind our backs?_

Carrick takes his hand away from his face and shakes his head, "I never treated you like a charity case. That is not what I was trying to do. I wanted to give you those things because you are my son. The woman you love is carrying your child. _My grandson_. You didn't deserve to be living that way. I didn't want that for you; I didn't want that for your baby."

Tears run down my face, and I put my head in my hands. Grace comes over and sits next to me and takes me into her arms. I know I shouldn't let her comfort me, because truthfully, I am hurt that they lied to us. I am hurt that they knew all this time and didn't say anything. Right now, though, I let her comfort me.

I let Grace go, and she rubs my back, and I look up at Christian through blurry eyes.

Christian glares at him. "That is all good and dandy, but that doesn't give you the right to lie to me. I can get past the fact that you honestly didn't know you had a son. I can get over the fact that you had your suspicions about me, but I will **NOT** get over the fact that you lied to me about it for two months!" he hisses. "You sat there and _knew_ that I was your son, and you continued with the lies. You were scared my _ass!_ How do you think we felt? _We_ were the ones who didn't have anything! _We_ were the ones who were living on the streets, hungry, cold and never knew how we were going to survive! Don't give me ' _I was scared'_ bullshit! You are a coward!" he yells.

I start to shake, and Grace rubs my arm as tears run down her face.

"I'm sorry, Christian. I should have told you the minute I found out. I know I messed up, but please, all we wanted what was best for you," Carrick begs.

Christian laughs and then shakes his head. "No, you didn't. You didn't want the best for me. If you wanted the best for me, then you should have told me the truth that night. Not two months later," he hisses and then looks up at Grayson then over his shoulder at Grace.

"I want to know when you two found out," he gestures to Grace and Grayson. "I want to know why you two went along with this," He chuckles in disbelief. He turns his back on a broken Carrick and turns towards Grace. "That scene you made in the hospital. What the hell were you trying to pull? Feeling sorry for me that your husband has a bastard child?" his voice turns colder the more he talks. I gasp, and my eyes widen at his choice of words. Grace's reaction is the same way.

"What?" Grace says in surprise. "Christian, no-," she gets up off the couch and walks towards him, but he backs away and then cuts her off by shouting.

"Stop pretending! Stop pretending that you care about me. It was all just pity. Pity that your husband's bastard got himself shot!"

Grace weeps into her hands and shakes her head back and forth frantically. "I don't pity you, Christian. Please, don't say things like that," she whimpers.

I look at him in surprise. I never heard him talk like this before. I know that he doesn't mean the things he is saying. He is just hurt.

Carrick is staring at Christian wide-eyed when Grayson storms over to Christian and gets into his face. "That is enough. I think you made your point. Your pissed off, I get that, but you need to stop yelling and calm the hell down," he demands.

Christian glares at him and then goes off again. "Was getting me a job part of your plan? Huh? You feel pity for me too. Did daddy dearest make you give me that job?" he growls.

Grayson glares back at him. "Nobody pity's you, goddammit! No one forced me do anything. I found out that you are my brother and just like him, I didn't want you to live that way," he says frustrated.

Christian rolls his eyes and stares at him for a minute before he turns around and faces me. "Let's go," he demands.

My eyes go wide, and I look at Carrick. "Christian-," he cuts me off.

"I said let's go. We're done here," he nearly shouts, and I jump again. He turns towards Carrick who still looks defeated. "I don't care what your excuses are. I am done, and I don't want to see any of you again. I hope I still have a job because I have to take care of my family, other than that, I don't want to have anything to do with any of you. Anastasia, let's go!" he shouts and stomps towards the front door.

I look around the room, and Grayson is shaking his head in disbelief. Carrick is trying not to cry, and Grace has her head in her hands.

I put my head down and then slowly get off the couch and carefully walk forward. Before I pass a confounded Carrick, I turn to him. I have something I want to ask him. I have always been curious, and I want to know if he knows. He looks up at me with tears in his eyes and if I'm not mistaken, a little bit of hope.

"Did you know my father?" I whisper. I know that Carrick knows who my biological father because Carla told me that she and Ella met our father's that night. I need to know if he knows where he is.

Carrick breath hitches and he suddenly looks more distressed. _Oh no._ His eyes glisten, and he shakes his head. His next words shock me. "Yes. I did know your father. He was in the same unit as I was. He…he didn't make it. He died overseas."

My lip quivers and I nod my head. A tear escapes from my eye, and I wipe it away. _I have no one. No family._

"What was his name?" I murmur and stare at him.

"Frank Lambert," he whispers.

"Frank," I whisper in awe and then give him a small smile. I take a deep breath and nod at him.

"Thank you. I'm sorry," my eyes glisten again when Carrick nods and his shoulder slump forward.

I look over at Christian, and he is waiting for me by the door. I pick up the tail of my dress, and walk forward and take Christian's outstretched hand. We walk through the door and before I close it, I look back at them for the last time.

They are staring at us in utter devastation. I give them another sad smile and then close the door softly behind me.

Christian pulls me forward as I try to keep up with his long strides. I shiver at the cold air. "Christian, where are we going? It's cold out here. We don't even have any jackets," my teeth chatter as we walk forward.

Christian stops and looks over at me in concern. "Fuck. We need to get out of here. We need to get to the bus stop, so we can get back to the apartment," he runs his hand through his hair and looks around the front yard. He takes off his tux jacket and puts it over my shoulders. I put my hands through the sleeves and wrap it around me.

"I know that, but it's freezing, Christian. We need to go back and get our stuff," I try to pull him back but he halts.

"I'm not going back in there. I am done with them, Anastasia," he growls, and I groan at the situation. _I don't want to walk in the cold._

Then, suddenly remember I have my cell phone in my clutch. I take it out with shaking hands since my hands are cold, I unsuccessfully hit the buttons so I can bring up my contacts.

After a few tries, I finally get to Priscilla's number and press it. She lives a few miles from here, so I hope she can take us home, so we don't have to walk in the cold to the bus stop that is a few miles from here. She answers on the third ring.

"Ana? Are you okay?" her voice is full of worry.

"I'm fine. We need a ride home, can you come pick us up?" I shiver, and my teeth chatter once more. Christian pulls me to him and rubs both of my arms to try to warm me up. I have his jacket, and he must be the one freezing his behind off.

"Of course, give me ten minutes, and I will be right over," she says and then hangs up. I put my phone back into my clutch and nuzzle into Christian's chest. He kisses my head and sighs heavily.

"I'm sorry. I just need to get out of here," he says sullenly.

"I know," I whisper. I know he doesn't want to talk about it, so I decide not to say anything about what happened. Emotions ran high, and he said things he didn't mean. He needs time, and distance away from them to get his head around everything.

All I can do is be there for him.

Exactly ten minutes later, we see Priscilla's red Mercedes convertible pull up next to us by the edge of the lawn. Christian leads me to the car and opens the back door. I get inside the warm car and sigh in relief. _It's toasty in here._

"Are you guys okay?" Priscilla turns towards us in concern.

She is wearing gray sweatpants, black converse, and a big black jacket with a white furry hood, and her hair is pulled up into a messy bun. _She's even beautiful without makeup_.

Christian closes the door and rubs his hands together and blows on them. I take his hands into mine and rub them together. He smiles a little at the gesture. "We're okay. Thanks for coming. We appreciate it," I smile gratefully.

"Of course, I would come. Let's get you guys home," she smiles and puts the car in drive.

Christian puts on my seat belt and then puts his on. I cuddle into his side, and he kisses my head. I stare out of the window while Priscilla drives towards our apartment building. Christian places his hand on my bump, and I put my hand on his as we drive into the night.

* * *

 _ **AN: Thank you for all the reviews/followers/PM's. I appreciate the support.**_

 ** _Be sure to check out my new story: Doubled Devotion. The next chapter for that will be up either tomorrow or Monday._**

 ** _Till next time._**


	24. Chapter 23

_**Ana**_

"I hope you have a good day at work," I say to Christian as I kiss him goodbye.

"Thanks," he says grimly as he pecks me on the lips.

I give him a small smile while he gets his things together from the kitchen table.

It has been a few days since the benefit. Work for Christian has become incredibly awkward. Grayson has been trying to talk to Christian, but he always tells me that he blows him off. _I wish he would speak to him._

Christian is not ready to talk about what happened. He told me he just wants to forget about it and move on without them.

I hate to see him like this. He's not talking to me, and he's hardly sleeping. He wakes up in the middle of the night numerous times, with sweat covering his body. Every time I try to comfort him, he shrugs it off my endless questions and tells me that he is fine.

I wish he would communicate with me.

I look over at him from the couch and see him counting some cash that he took out from his wallet. He got paid last night, so I need to start paying some bills and head to the grocery store today.

We applied for government assistance and received $350 a month in food stamps. We are also eligible for cash assistance while I am pregnant. The only requirement is that we can only receive the temporary cash assistance a month before my due date in June.

I also applied for a program called, WIC and the program helps with milk, eggs, bread, vegetables, and fruit. I am planning on breastfeeding, and the program also offers breastfeeding classes and a new breast pump.

Christian sighs and I look up at him. He runs a hand through his hair and picks up his jacket. He is wearing his work jeans, a plain black V-neck shirt, and his work boots. He refuses to wear the company shirt, so he puts on either a black shirt or a plaid one. I don't think Grayson either cares or doesn't want to make a scene over it.

I don't know the real reason why he won't put on the shirt. Although, I think I can guess why he refused to put that shirt on again, all because of the Grey name. The shirt isn't required to wear, so I decided not to dwell on it. _It's not important._

I hate to see him feel so uncomfortable every morning before he goes off to work. I can tell that he doesn't want to work for Grayson anymore, but he doesn't feel like he has a choice. The baby is coming, and we need the income.

He's at a rock and a hard place, and it makes me feel guilty that he feels like he has to stay there. I told him that he could always go out and find another job. He says the benefits are too good and the pay is higher than any other construction job out there right now. He said he is just going to suck it up and continue to work where he is at. Maybe later there will be another opportunity, but for right now, he will make the most out of it.

He walks over to me and quickly pecks me on the lips once more. "I'll see you after work. I love you," I say as I run my hand over his arm.

"Love you too," he says as he walks away to the front door.

I close my eyes and sigh when I hear the close of the door. I rub my bump and get up off the kitchen chair. I walk to the bedroom and stand in the doorway. I look over at the bed at the ruffled sheets, and it brings me back to this morning.

I woke up to Christian between my legs. After I had found my release, he fucked me harder than he ever has before. He still was gentle because he didn't want to hurt the baby, but he was still rougher than he usually is.

It bugs me that he is so affected by what happened last weekend. I don't know what to do for him. All I can do right now is support him and his decision to distance ourselves from the Grey's.

I haven't heard from Mia. Elliot called a few times over the past week, and he didn't say anything about Mia or the Grey's. He was calling to see how we were doing, and after Christian had told him that we were fine, Elliot let us know that he was there for us when we needed him. Christian said thanks and then they both hung up. That was three days ago.

Priscilla called yesterday to see how things were going. I told her that Christian was focusing on work, and didn't want to talk about what happened. I was surprised when she said that her and Grayson were not speaking at the moment. Apparently, Grayson and Priscilla didn't hold any secrets from one other, but she thought it was best not to get involved and give him time to work it out with his family.

I don't blame her. If I were her, I wouldn't want to get involved in the clusterfuck that is our life either. I still can't believe that Carrick and Christian are father and son. I know I suspected it, and I knew deep down that they were related. I guess knowing the truth is still a lot to take in.

I walk over to the bed and gather the rumpled sheets. I bring them over to the laundry room and place them in the washer. I walked back to the room and decided to go to the store. I walk into the closet and pick out a long-sleeved black sweater, black leggings, and black knee-length boots.

I get dressed and put my hair in a messy bun. I walk into the living room and get my coat from the couch. I put it on and suddenly hear a noise coming from outside of the apartment. I freeze and then frown as I adjust my black scarf that is around my neck and listen carefully.

I don't hear anything now, which is weird. There are people always walking in front of the apartment all day, but this noise was different. It sounded like a thud and a scratch coming from the window.

I adjust my purse and quietly walk to the front window trying not to make any noise. I slowly lift part of the blinds and peek out. I don't see anything except the road in front of the building and a few cars part on the side street. There is snow covering the roads and ground, and I look down and see a few footstep tracks in the snow by my front door. I frown and move my eyes to the left and right, trying to find anybody lurking by the door. The footsteps seem to go in all directions but come to a stop in front of my door.

After a few more moments, I don't hear or see anything. I sigh and shake my head. _Probably just our neighbors._

I let go of the blind, and step back from the window. I put my hand in my pocket to search for my phone, and I immediately feel the plastic. I contemplate calling Christian, but I dismiss the idea. _Probably just his footsteps from this morning._

I need to stop being paranoid. _It's nothing, Ana._ I shake my head again and decide to let it go. I walk to the front door and unlock it. I slowly walk out and look to my left and right. I still don't see anything, or anybody so I turn around and shut and lock the apartment door.

I adjust my purse once more and cross my arms over my chest and carefully walk forward towards the stairs. The snow crunches under my feet as I walk down the stairs. The bus arrives before I can get to the bus stop. My teeth chatter as I carefully power walk to the open bus doors. I climb up and immediately hit with warm heat as I walk towards the back of the bus.

I sigh when I sit down. I groan when I remember that I forgot my winter hat. If Christian were here, he would reprimand me for not remembering to grab it on my way out. It's freezing out here, and I hope I don't get sick. That is the last thing I need right now.

I lean back on the seat and stare out of the window at the passing scenery.

* * *

I arrive at the local grocery store ten minutes later. I get off the bus and walk to the front doors. I grab a shopping cart and start going down each aisle. I pick up the bare essentials including milk, eggs, cereal, fruit, and vegetables. I also find a good deal on ground beef and fresh chicken breasts.

I decide to make a simple spaghetti for dinner tonight, so I grab noodles, spaghetti sauce, garlic bread and parmesan cheese and set them all in the cart. I count my items in the cart to make sure I didn't forget anything. I go down the aisles once more to ensure, and I spot coffee and tea bags. Christian now drinks coffee at work, so I decide to pick some up for him, along with green and peppermint tea and some plain white sugar for me.

I walk to the checkout line and wait for my turn. I spot a Cosmopolitan magazine and decide to check it out. I flip through the pages, and I immediately blush when I come across an article about different sex positions, and there are numerous pictures about different positions. My eyes widen when I see _Hands on knees. Oh!_ I bite my lip and see that it's also safe for pregnancy.

I look around and see an old couple standing behind me. They are standing there staring at me with curiosity. I blush harder and quickly shut the magazine and throw it in my shopping cart. I'm embarrassed to be seen reading that magazine, but I'm curious to see what other sex positions there are.

Finally, after standing in line for five minutes, it's now my turn. I start putting my purchases on the moving belt so the cashier can ring them up. I take out my WIC checks and give them to the cashier so she can get those out of the way first.

She smiles and starts ringing the WIC foods up first. When I have signed all of my checks, the cashier then starts with my other food items. I place the shopping bags full of food back in my shopping cart and wait until she is finished.

I take out my SNAP card and pay for the groceries. The total comes to $75.43, so we have enough to return a few more times for the month. I thank her and wish her a good day before I push the shopping cart out of the store. I pick up the grocery bags from the cart and walk towards the bus stop. There are a few bags, and they are somewhat heavy, so it takes me a while to get to the benches. _It sucks not having a car._

The bus comes five minutes later, and I tiredly pick up the bags and get on the bus. I sigh and adjust my purse on my shoulder when I sit down and place the bags on the seat beside me.

I get to my apartment building and drag myself up the stairs, trying to hold the grocery bags. It's still freezing outside, so my hands are beginning to become numb from the cold, and carry the bags.

I breathe a sigh of relief when I get to my apartment door. I put the bags down on the snow covered ground, and take the keys out of my purse. I jump when I see two men suddenly appear in my peripheral vision. I look towards them, and they are leaning on the rail and smoking a cigarette. One of the men looks at me out of the corner of his eye before he quickly looks forward.

I hurry and unlock my door and pick up the bags and nearly jump inside. I practically slam the door a little harder than absolutely necessary when I get all the bags inside. I'm probably being dramatic. Those guys gave the creeps, though.

I shake my head at myself. I sigh contently and take off my jacket and scarf. I place them both on the sofa and pick up the grocery bags off of the floor.

I start putting the food in their correct place in the pantry. I move on to the cold food, and it's then I notice that I didn't buy any butter. _Great._

I groan and realize that I need to go back to the store. I look towards the door and remember the two guys who are still probably standing outside. I don't want to go out there again, plus it's freezing outside. I guess I will go when Christian gets home from work.

I sigh and finish putting away the groceries. I walk to the sofa and open my purse and retrieve my phone. I see that it is 12:30 pm. Christian gets home from work around 5-5:30 pm.

I decide to go and take a nap before he gets back. I am about to head to the bedroom, but remember that I left our bedsheets in the washer. I walk towards the laundry room and transfer them to the dryer and set it to thirty minutes.

I can't sleep on the bed without sheets, and I don't want to sleep on the sofa, so I decide to take a long hot shower to pass the time.

When I am done taking my shower, I dry off and go to the sink and open the medicine cabinet. I apply my cocoa butter onto my swollen stomach. I don't have any noticeable stretch marks yet, but I still like to implement it, just in case.

I walk to the closet and look through my pajamas. I don't want to sleep in some day clothes, so I decide to put on a matching pair of black silk pajama shorts and a spaghetti strap shirt. I bend down and gather my hair and stand up to put my hair up in a bun.

The dryer should be done now, so I walk to the laundry room and see it has stopped. I get the sheets out of the dryer and walk back to the room.

After fixing the bed sheets, I fluff my pillow and get into bed. I turn over and pick up my cell phone and see it is almost 2 in the afternoon. I have some time before he gets off of work. I set the phone down and turn on my side and get comfortable. I close my heavy eyes and fall into a dreamless sleep.

* * *

My eyes flutter open when I feel someone lightly kiss the inside of my thigh. I move my legs to the left and lightly giggle when several strands of hair tickle my leg. A deep chuckle comes from between my legs causing me to look down and see a mess of copper hair and dark gray eyes staring back at me.

Christian is biting his lip while he stares seductively at me from under his long thick eyelashes. I notice my shorts and underwear are off, and thrown onto the floor. He must have taken them off while I was still sleeping.

I moan and close my eyes when he blows up and down my sex. He puts his hands on both of my thighs while he slowly drags his touch through my slit. My mouth drops open when he opens my sex with both of his thumbs, and circles his tongue around my clit.

I moan loudly when he enters a single finger into my sex, hitting my g-spot. I throw my hands above my head and open my legs wider and place my feet flat on the bed. My hips move in a circle while Christian continues to pleasure me with his skilled tongue.

He moans against my sex causing me to grind harder into his face. He inserts a second finger and moves them with a come-hither motion. The burning starts as he massages my clit with his tongue, and then when he applies just enough pressure to my g-spot I explode and yell out his name.

He continues to stimulate my clit and g-spot as I ride out my intense orgasm. I heavily pant as I come down from my orgasm. Christian sits up on his knees and sticks his fingers in his mouth and sucks on them. He closes his eyes and moans causing me to reciprocate, causing me to get turned on all over again.

My eyes widen and my mouth waters when I see his massive erection standing to attention. He smirks as he sees me staring at him. He slowly fists himself and he nod towards my sex. I bite my lip and put my hand on my puffy lips and start to circle my clit with my index finger.

Christian doesn't take his eyes off of my finger as he fists his cock faster and harder. I close my eyes and apply more pressure onto my clit.

"Fuck, baby. Yes," he moans as he watches me pleasure myself.

I moan and throw my head back as I get closer and closer to my orgasm. I open my eyes, and I see his mouth open in ecstasy and his eyes closed tightly.

"Christian, I want you to fuck me," I beg when I hear him start to grunt.

His eyes fly open, and he stops fisting himself. He holds his cock in his hands as he tries to hold off his orgasm. A light sheen of sweat covers his naked body, and his hair is a mess. The tip of his cock is already an angry purple color, and the base is still pulsating around his hand. He needs a release, and it's then I remember about the sex position in the Cosmo magazine.

I quickly sit up, and he gasps as I push him on the bed, so he is laying on his back. His cock falls heavily onto his stomach. He is panting wildly as I turn around and straddle his stomach. I take his cock into my hand and slowly side down onto his erection causing him to moan loudly. I lean back and put my hands on his knees as he puts his on my hips.

"Don't move. Baby, I'm going to cum. Just give me a minute," he grunts as his hands tighten on my hips.

My breathing escalates the more I stay still. He closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. He lets go of my hips and I lean back more on my hands. I close my eyes at how deep he is. He is practically hitting my cervix at this angle.

He nods his head frantically to let me know that I can start to move. I gasp out a breath as I start to move up and down slowly. He puts his hands behind his head and closes his eyes.

I throw my head back as I increase my pace. He moans loudly as I thrust harder and harder onto his cock. I open my eyes and see him staring at me with wide eyes. His mouth is open as he stares down at our connection.

"Fuck. Fuck, yes. Harder, baby. Yes, oh, right there. Yes, baby," he yells out.

My orgasm is rapidly approaching as I move up and down, over and over again. My thighs are burning with each upward thrust.

"I'm going to cum. Say my name, baby!" he moans.

"Christian!" I yell out as my orgasm rips through me causing him to throw his head back and yell out my name as he cums full force.

* * *

"I forgot to get butter at the store," I whine while I run my hand through Christian's chest hair.

I am laying on his chest. One leg is thrown over his, and my head is resting by his steady heartbeat. His hand is lightly running up and down my arm while his other hand is resting comfortably on my bump.

Christian chuckles and kisses my forehead. "We can go get some or we can wait until this weekend. Whatever you want to do baby."

"No, we need some. I want to make you breakfast in the morning, and I need butter," I sigh and pout. I'm so comfortable; I don't want to move, though. I want to lay with him forever.

"Okay, baby. Let's get up and get dressed."

I nod and kiss his chest before I get up off the bed. We both get dressed in some comfy clothes and put on our coats, scarfs, gloves, and hats. I put on some of my furry boots, while he slips back into his work boots.

Christian grabs his wallet from the kitchen table, while I pick up my purse from the couch where I left it last. I check the time on my cell phone and see that it is nearing seven. We need to hurry so we can come back and make dinner.

Christian locks the door, and I stand there looking around the apartment building. It's lightly snowing outside, and it's still freezing like it was this afternoon. I cross my arms over my chest as I wait for him to lock the door. He grabs my hand and leads me down the stairs towards the bus stop.

The bus pulls up two minutes later, and we both hop on. We sit in the back, and I cuddle into his side and wait for our stop.

We get to the grocery store and head inside. We pick up the butter and go wait in line. There are quite a few people here, so it takes us a while to check out.

Once we are done, we head back towards the bus stop with Christian holding the bag with one hand and my hand in his other. We sit down on the bench and Christian holds me while we wait for the bus.

"I didn't ask you how was work?" I ask as I play with his hand.

"Fine. Same shit, different day," he shrugs.

"Did you see Grayson?" I frown.

"No, he wasn't there today," he snorts.

I nod and bite my lip. I want to ask him if he is ever going to talk with Grayson, and I decide to go ahead and ask even if I know he is going to try to change the subject. "Are you ever going to talk to him?"

He sighs and shakes his head. "No. There is nothing to talk about. I already told you this."

I sigh and look down. He needs to talk to him and get his side of the story. I know that Carrick and Grace lied to him, but we don't know why Grayson didn't say anything. He's his brother, and I want him to at least hear him out, but I can't make him do anything he doesn't want to do.

I decide to let it go. "I love you," I nuzzle my nose into his neck.

"I love you too," he says breathlessly as I continue to nuzzle his neck.

The bus takes longer to get to the stop. Finally, after thirty minutes of sitting here freezing our asses off, the bus arrives.

We practically run to the bus, and sigh as we are finally hit with warm heat.

* * *

"Careful baby," he scolds me as I almost trip when walking up the stairs to our apartment.

"Sorry. The stairs are too icy," I growl as I climb the stairs trying not to fall on my ass.

I'm walking slowly, but with being my clumsy self, I still end up slipping. Christian holds a hand to my lower back as he helps me up the last of the steps to our apartment.

I sigh in relief when we get to our door. I look up and frown when I see the door cracked open. I stop walking, and Christian almost bumps into me.

"What are you doing? Let's go in, babe," he says trying to push me forward.

I shake my head as my eyes widen, and he steps forward to see why I stopped. He freezes when he sees the open door. He quickly pulls me in back of him and looks frantically around us. I start to shake as I look around us as well. _What the hell is going on?_

"Stay here," he barks as he walks inside of the apartment.

I cross my arms and try to see inside. It's pitch black in there, and I can't see anything.

Suddenly the lights turn on, and I gasp out in shock. I run into the apartment and see the living room completely trashed. I look around the room and my eyes water at the mess I see in front of me.

Christian is looking around the room in disbelief with his hand frozen on top of the lamp shade. I gasp in horror when I see the words that are spray painted on the wall.

It says _Rich_ that is marked out with a big red X. I frown. _What the hell is that supposed to mean?_

I shake my head in disbelief as I look around the clutter that is now our living room.

The sofa is thrown upside down. The lamp that is closer to the door is broken and smashed on the ground. The accent pillows are shredded with the stuffing all around the carpet. Our newly bought food is all over the kitchen. Broken glass from the dishes are smashed all over the tile, and the kitchen table is upside down.

I cup my mouth with both of my hands as I walk to our bedroom. Christian tries to grab me, but I walk into the room anyway. "Ana, don't go in there," he urges.

I throw open the door and gasp. The room is completely destroyed. Our bed sheets are all ripped. The dresser is spray painted with graffiti, and our clothes are thrown all over the floor. The mirror that was attached to our dresser is broken and glass litters the room.

Tears stream down my face as I see my new jewelry box opened and placed upside down on the dresser. I walk over to it and cry harder when I find it completely empty.

Grace gave me that jewelry box with a few pieces of new jewelry to wear. _Who would do this?_

Christian comes into the room, and hugs me to his chest. I cry into his shirt as he coos in my ear. He runs his hand through my hair and tells me to sit on the bed so he can call the police. I nod against his chest, and he kisses my hair. He leads me to the bed, and he runs out of the room while I cradle my bump with both of my hands.

I whimper and think back to earlier when I saw those two guys who were smoking outside of our apartment. _Did they do this? But why? What did we do to them?_

Christian walks back into the room and tells me that the police will be here soon. I nod, and he comes to sit next to me on the bed. He holds me until the police get there. He walks out of the room once more, and I wipe my eyes with the sleeve of my jacket.

I walk out of the room and meet four police officers who are assessing the damage to the apartment. I sigh miserably and walk towards Christian who is talking to one of the officers.

* * *

Over two hours later, the police leave after Christian and I give our statements and lead them through every room that was destroyed. The police tell us that someone picked the door lock and entered around the time we left to go to the grocery store. A team came in to take some fingerprints from the door and kitchen cabinets. They bagged some things up that were thrown across the floor as evidence.

We gave them our contact information and said they will keep in touch when they find any information on the intruders. The police told us that we needed to get a hold of the apartment manager in the morning about the break-in. Christian wanted to go down there now, but I told him I wanted to wait until morning because I was exhausted and just wanted to go to sleep.

When he saw how tired and weak I was, he agreed to wait until morning. He plans on staying home with me tomorrow to help me clean up the apartment. I smiled gratefully and breathed a sigh of relief because I don't feel safe staying here by myself.

We turn off the lights, and he locks the front door, and double checks to make sure it is secure before we walk into the bedroom. The police recommended we stay somewhere else for the night, but we don't have any extra cash to get a hotel room right now since we used all of our paycheck for bills and the electricity.

The police agreed to keep a cop outside of the apartment for the night to make sure no one else breaks in, or the intruders come back.

Christian helps me take off the torn sheets, and thankfully we have an extra set that was not ripped. We make the bed, and I remove my clothes, not bothering to put on any pajamas, and climb into bed. Christian undresses and climbs into bed a few moments later. I immediately curl into his side, and he holds me tight. He kisses my hair and sighs deeply.

We are silent for a while before I break the silence. "What are we going to do?" I whimper.

"Well worry about it in the morning. Please, try to get some sleep, baby," he whispers in my ear as I nod against his chest.

I cuddle closer to Christian, and suddenly the reality of what happened hits me full force. The next thing I know, I burst into tears. Heartbreaking sobs leave my body as I shake in his arms. Christian coos in my ear and kisses my hair repeatedly as I weep into his chest.

 _Are we ever going to catch a break?_

* * *

 ** _AN: Thank you for reviewing and following. I am off of school for two weeks, so I will try to update sometime after Christmas._**

 ** _I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Hope everyone stays warm out there!_**

 ** _Also, I wanted to take a minute and tell the guest reviewer who said that this story inspired them to donate clothes to a local homeless shelter. THANK YOU. Your comment truly made my day. Many people out there do not have clothes or food, especially in the winter, so again, thank you for donating. I am sure those items will help out families and individuals that desperately needs them._**

 ** _Happy Holidays._**


	25. Chapter 24

_**Ana**_

I wake up the next morning to the bright sun shining right in my face. I squint as I slowly open my eyes and look around the brightly-lit room. I see that Christian is not in bed with me anymore. His side of the sheets are ruffled and the spot that he was laying is still warm, so he probably just woke up not too long ago.

I sigh when I remember the events that occurred last night.

The apartment was broken into. I don't know why. We never did anything to make any enemies here. We barely lived here long enough to piss anyone off. I don't understand why these things are always happening to us.

I roll on my back and look up at the white popcorn ceiling and try to process what happened last night. I never told Christian about those two guys that I saw when I came home from grocery shopping. I don't know if they were the ones who broke in, but I have half a mind to call the police officers and tell them about those suspicious men.

I slowly sit up and climb off the bed. I walk to the bathroom and take a hot shower. I am lathering my body with my cherry blossom body wash when the bathtub curtain suddenly opens causing met to jump in surprise.

Christian slides in behind me and circles his arms around my waist and places his hand on my bump. "Morning, beautiful," he whispers in my ear making me shiver.

"Morning. When did you get up?" I say while continuing to lather my skin with the body wash.

"A little bit ago. I was just calling into work to tell them what was going on. They told me to take a few days off. With pay."

He runs his hands in a circle on top of my bump while he runs his nose along my neck and shoulder and back again. I close my eyes and melt into him. I let the loofa fall from my hands when Christian's hand reaches my sex. He bites my ear softly making me moan.

"Do you want to give me a soapy?" he says seductively in my ear.

I tense, and my eyes fly open. _A what?_ I turn my head around to find Christian grinning at me with lust in his gray eyes.

"What the heck is a soapy?" I say with a deep frown mirroring my brow.

"It's when you give me a message with your delectable body while you're covered in your body wash," he chuckles while rubbing my body wash onto my arms and shoulders.

 _Huh? Where the heck did he learn about that?_

"How would you know what that was anyway?" I turn around and cross my arms over my chest and glared at him. I don't know why I am annoyed at the fact that he knows what a _soapy_ is.

He frowns. "Baby, I was just joking with you. I'm sorry," he looks guilty.

He comes to stand in front of me and places his forehead on mine and stares into my eyes. He looks lost, and I rapidly feel like crap for snapping at him over something stupid.

"I'm sorry. I don't know why I snapped at you. You didn't do anything wrong," I murmur and run my hands through his wet hair.

He purrs and closes his eyes in contentment. I smile lovingly at him as he wraps me in his arms. "Just curious. Where did you learn about what a soapy is? I never heard of it," I shake my head.

He smiles and walks me backward so we are under the torrent of water. He washes off the suds that are still on my back as he explains. "I overheard some guys at work talking about it. One of them just got back from Thailand, and apparently, it's quite a popular message over there. I'm sorry baby, I saw your lathering yourself up, and it made me think of it. Just trying to make you laugh, you know, because of last night," he gives me a weak smile.

I smile apologetically and shake my head at him. "It's okay. I'm just still on edge about what happened. I'm sorry I got emotional," I shrug and lean my head on his shoulder while he runs his hands over my back. It's very soothing.

"You have nothing to be sorry for baby. I understand," he kisses my head as we hold each other under the warm torrent.

I giggle when I feel his erection against my upper thigh. He leans down a little to nuzzle his nose into my neck. I moan and lean my head back as he runs his teeth along my jaw. A few beats later, his lips crash into mine.

He abruptly picks me up, and I wrap my legs around his waist as he reaches down and lines his erection against my sex. He slowly thrust into me causing us both to moan in ecstasy as the events of last night slowly slip away as he gently makes love to me.

* * *

After our relaxing and satisfying shower, we both step out and get dressed. The people who broke into the apartment didn't steal any of our clothes, but they did scatter them all over the room, so most of them are now wrinkled.

I put on a pair of black leggings, a long plaid maternity shirt, and comfy socks. Christian puts on a pair of jeans a long black shirt and a pair of socks before he takes my hand into his. He walks me out of the bedroom, and I sigh when I see the mess that is our living room.

Christian sighs as well and looks over his shoulder at me. "You sure you feel up to cleaning this up, baby? I don't want you to overdo it," he says concerned.

I nod. "Yes, I'm sure. I need to do something."

"Okay. Don't pick up anything too big or heavy," he squints his eyes at me in warning.

I roll my eyes and then nod as he cocks his eyebrow at me.

I walk to the kitchen and bend down to get a trash bag that is stored under the sink. I open one up and start picking up the couch stuffing's and stuff them into the bag. I try to be careful in the kitchen because there are broken pieces from the plates and bowls all over the linoleum floor.

When I am done picking up all the trash in the kitchen and dining room, I move over to the front door and tie up the trash bag and set it by the window. Christian is busy picking up the furniture and some of the glass that is scattered around the kitchen floor. I maneuver around the kitchen chairs to the pantry. I lean down and start picking up the groceries that are scattered around the floor and start putting them away.

Thank God, we have more food stamp money, because we need to go back to the store for more food. They took most of our food for some godly reason. I guess they got hungry while trashing our apartment. I grit my teeth and take a deep breath. _Bastards._

I put the last can of vegetables on the shelf and survey the rest of the food. We have two cans of vegetables, a bag of chips, tea, coffee, a few pieces of snack food and a bag of roman noodles.

I sigh and close the pantry door. I pick up the utensils and put them away in the drawers. Christian has finished picking up the broken shards of glass from the floor and is tying the full trash bag and placing it next to the one I put there earlier.

"We need to go back to the store. Those idiots almost took everything. We don't even have any more cereal for breakfast, but there is a little bit of milk left," I sigh as I look at the contents of our refrigerator.

"Okay. Let me take this trash out, and we can go," he says distracted by picking up the two bags.

He opens the door and immediately curses causing me to look up and shut the refrigerator. "What?"

"The streets have at least a foot of snow on the ground. I don't think we can go right now. We have to wait to see if it thaws a little before we can leave," he snaps and throws the trash bags on the ground. _Great._

He puts his hands on his hips and stands there staring at the snow for a few moments before he runs his hand through his hair and picks the bags up. He comes inside and shuts the door.

"Let's just pick up the rest of the apartment and then hopefully we can leave in a few hours," he sighs and picks up the broken lamp.

"Yeah, hopefully," I murmur as I lean over to pick up some cups and silverware.

We are silent for a few minutes before Christian breaks it. "How are you-," he starts to say, but a loud impatient knock on the door interrupts him.

"Is that the cop that was stationed outside?" I frown and look towards the front door.

"I don't know. Maybe they have some information on who those fuckers are," Christian says as he walks towards the door.

Before Christian gets to the door, we hear a shrill cry. Christian stops and looks over his shoulder at me confused. I frown and shrug at him.

He swings the door open, and the couple on the other side is not who we were expecting to see.

"Mia? Ethan?" I say astounded.

My eyes widen in shock when I see the state that they are in.

Mia and Ethan are a mess. They both have thin worn out jackets on, with dirty hair and their clothes are all wrinkled. Ethan is trying to console a crying Lola who looks like she spent the night in a ditch. Her brown hair is all tangled, and her face is covered in a thin layer of dirt. Tears are streaming down her face while she tries to get out of Ethan's hold.

Mia is holding Liam's limp hand. Liam is standing there shivering with a torn white shirt, dirty jeans and dirt and grim covering his pale face. Mia is staring at me with tears in her eyes. They both look like they lost weight, and haven't slept in a few days.

I run over to them and hurriedly motion them inside. "Oh, my God, what happened?" I say in panic as I close the door.

The cold wind making me shiver as I slam the front door. Christian takes a still crying Lola from Ethan's hold and looks her over in fear.

"I'm sorry. We didn't know where else to go," Mia starts to cry as she protectively places Liam in front of her.

"It's okay. What happened? Are you guys hurt?" I say concerned as I lean down and check over Liam.

"No, not physically injured anyway. We're sorry to bombard you like this. Jason gave us your address," Ethan murmurs as a blush grows over his cheeks.

"It's fine, don't worry about it. Sweetheart, are you okay?" Christian says as he tries to smooth Lola's hair.

Her lip trembles and her eyes fill with tears once more. "Hungwy," she says as she holds her stomach. My eyes widen when I see her stomach inflamed.

Her expression breaks my heart. They all look they haven't eaten in two days. _What the hell happened?_

"Ana, can you get her something to eat?" Christian whips his head to mine and pleads with his eyes.

"Yes. Please, Mia, you guys come sit down," I take her hand and lead them to the table.

Ethan smiles at me gratefully as he takes Liam and sits him down on his lap. Mia looks around the room and frowns while tears stream down her face.

"What happened here?" her voice cracks as she sits down.

"Someone broke into the apartment. It's fine. What I am more worried about is what happened to you?" I say as I hurriedly make the kids some food.

"We don't have a lot of food left, and we don't have anything for breakfast, so I have to make the noodles," I give them an apologetic smile as I boil the water for the noodles.

"It's okay. I'm sorry just to show up all of a sudden. There was no more room at the shelter. We ran into Jason while on the streets and asked if he knew where you guys were staying," Mia explains while she wipes her eyes with her jacket.

"Mia, what happened?" I say again as I bring the noodles over to the table and set the corn chips in the middle. _I wish we had more than that!_

Liam and Lola lung for the food and practically shoves the food into their mouths with their fingers even before I can give them silverware. Mia puts her head in her hands after a few beats of staring at her near-starved kids. My eyes widen in shock as I stare at them. _When was the last time they have eaten?_

Mia starts to cry and causes Ethan to get up off the chair and holds his wife from behind.

"What are we going to do, Ana? I don't want to lose the kids," Mia says into her hands as she continues to sob.

I frown in concern and look over at Christian. He frowns in confusion as we stare at each other perplexed.

"What do you mean Mia?" I ask while I open the chip bag.

Liam lunged for the bag when he finished shoveling the noodles into his mouth causing me to jump in surprise.

Ethan kisses Mia's head quickly and takes Liam off of the table since he was trying to crawl over the table to get to the chips. My hand flies to my mouth as I look at Liam's sad expression to get more food.

"You're going to get sick, son. Come down; nobody is going to take the food away," Ethan's voice cracks as he cradles his son in his arms.

Liam's face is all smeared in noodles, and he is trying to wiggle out of his dad's hold to get back to the chips.

"When was the last time you all ate?" Christian hisses.

Ethan suddenly looks guilty as he sits down and places Liam on his lap. He gives him some chips one at a time, so he doesn't get sick. I remember the feeling of being nearly starved when I was a kid. My tummy was severely bloated, dry skin, fatigue, feeling dizzy, and I also had trouble paying attention to what Christian was saying to me at the time.

We were only three years old. No child should be nearly starved to death at that age.

I look over at the two and I can see that the kids haven't eaten in at least two days. Liam looks like he is in a food trance. He won't take his eyes off of the chips in Ethan's hand, and it breaks my heart all over again.

A tear escapes from my eye when Lola finishes her portion of the food. Her noodle filled hands fly to the chip bag, and Mia finally sits up and wipes her eyes while trying to give Lola one chip at a time.

"Slowly, honey," She murmurs as she feeds her daughter.

She slowly looks up at Christian. His jaw is tense, and he is shooting daggers at Mia and Ethan while he waits for her to answer his question. I rub my bump and leave my hand on my stomach.

"Yesterday morning," she barely whispers as she looks down ashamed.

I gasp and whip my head over to Christian. He looks as shocked as I am. _Two days!_

"Why? Why are you guys not at the shelter?" Christian says baffled at what she just said.

"We can't go back to the shelter. They will find us and take the kids away," Mia sniffles.

"Who? Who will take the kids away?" Christian frowns.

"CPS. Someone reported us to the agency," Ethan hissed.

 _What the hell? CPS?_

"Who would do such a thing?" I ask dumbfounded.

"We don't know. Mrs. Shana has been trying to help us out, but the police and CPS are trying to find us. They came to the shelter a few times. Mrs. Shana gave us an address to another shelter so we could lay low for a while, but it has been overcrowded for the last three nights. We had nowhere to go, so we had no choice but to sleep in some abandoned houses," Ethan explains while he gives Liam some more chips.

"Jesus," Christian says stunned as he runs a hand down his face. I try not to cry.

"I'm so sorry. If we knew, we would have let you guys stay here. I'm glad you came over," I say sympathetically as I take hold of Mia's hand.

"Thank you for the food. We really appreciate it," Mia gives me a sad smile.

"Of course. We need to go to the store in a while to pick up some more groceries. We haven't eaten yet, but hopefully, the weather will improve enough so we can go out and get some so we can all have a proper meal," I give Mia a warm smile.

"Could we possible stay here for a few days?" Mia asks nervously. She turns her head to look at Ethan, and he quickly looks away from her.

"Sure. Of course, you can. However long you guys need," I say immediately.

Christian looks over at me with a frown before his lips form into a thin line and nod his head after a few seconds.

"Thank you," Mia breathe a sigh of relief and her eyes turn glassy and then stares at the table.

I give her a smile and squeeze her hand, so she looks up at me, which she does and gives me a smile that doesn't reach her eyes.

"So…what does that supposed to mean?" Ethan says nervously after a few minutes of silence.

"What?" I look over at him.

"The spray paint?" he points to the graffiti on the wall.

"I have no idea. The police are looking for whoever broke in," I shrug.

"Police?" Mia looks panicked.

"Yeah, don't worry, Mia. I won't tell them you are here," I reassure her.

"Thank you," She says gratefully.

We sit there and talk for a while about what has happened over the last two months. They told us that Ethan's parents have tried to get a hold of him at the shelter, but Ethan refused to talk to them. He doesn't know why they want to speak to him since they have basically shunned him out of their lives. He doesn't want anything to do with them, and I don't blame him.

We don't mention what happened with the Grey's. I don't want to overwhelm them with our drama, so we both stay quiet about the situation. Lola and Liam stop eating after twenty minutes of us talking. They both are in their parent's arms, and their little eyes are starting to droop. I am amazed that they didn't get sick due to them shoveling the food into their mouths.

I get up and get them both a glass of water from the tap. I hand them the little cups and their eyes fly open and chug the water down.

"Do you mind if I put them down somewhere so they can rest? They didn't get much sleep last night," Mia asks nervously while wringing her hands that are placed on Liam's lap.

"Of course. You can put them down on our bed," I smile and motion for them to follow me.

Ethan and Mia stand up with the kids and come with me to the bedroom. They get them settled on the bed, and they immediately fall asleep.

"Why don't you two get some rest as well? We need to head to the grocery store so we can eat, so why don't you guys sleep while we are gone? You two look exhausted," I offer.

They both look at each other apprehensively for a few seconds before Ethan looks at me. "Thank you. I think we will," he gives me a small smile.

"Okay. We will be back in an hour or so. The bathroom is right there if you guys want to take a shower," I point to the bathroom, and they nod at me gratefully.

I leave them to it, and walk out of the bedroom and close the door quietly, so I don't wake up the kids. Christian is pacing in front of the broken coffee table. I frown, and he stops pacing when I walk towards him.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm all right," He tries to smile, but it comes out more of a grimace than anything.

"What is it, Christian?" I sigh.

He hesitates in answering my question, but after a few beats, he shakes his head. "Nothing. Let's just go to the grocery store before the weather worsens," he turns around and walks to the kitchen to get his coat.

I sigh, suddenly tired and get my coat on. I lean down to put on some shoes, and Christian does the same. My stomach rumbles while I wait by the door for Christian.

"You need to eat. Come," His lips form into a thin line as he opens the front door.

I nod and follow him out of the apartment.

* * *

It took thirty minutes to get to the grocery store due to the heavy snow on the ground, but we finally made it there safely. Christian and I go down each aisle and put various foods in our cart for the second time. Since Mia, Ethan, and the kids are staying with us, we have to double on the food for the month.

I pick out a couple of boxes of kid-friendly cereal and a couple of gallons of milk. I choose some healthy snacks and juice boxes for the kids. I also get numerous boxes of frozen meals so Mia and Ethan can have something to eat for lunch every day.

Eggs, bacon, pancake mix, bananas, bread, _butter_ , oatmeal, ground turkey, chicken breasts, herbs, extra virgin olive oil, noodles, spaghetti sauce, peanut butter, strawberry jelly, ice cream, a liter of ginger ale and coffee all get thrown into the cart.

Christian picks up some fresh vegetables and fruit before we check out. We get everything bagged and paid for before we head out of the store. We have $50 left on our card, so hopefully, the groceries will last for all six of us until Christian gets paid in a week and a half.

We get back to the apartment thirty minutes later. I shiver from the cold as Christian opens the front door of our apartment. He has most of the bags in his hand because he refuses me to help him hold some of the bags so he could give his arms a break.

We place the bags of groceries on the kitchen table, and we take our coats, scarves, and gloves off. The apartment is silent, so they must be still sleeping.

I take my time putting the groceries away while Christian tidies up the rest of the apartment. I don't know how we are going to get the graffiti off the wall, but hopefully, when we get paid, we can get some paint and cover it up. It still baffles me on what those bastards wrote. _What the hell does it mean?_

I walk to our bedroom door and open it slowly to try not to wake them up. I poke my head through the door and see Lola and Liam awake and laying there quietly while Mia and Ethan are still dead to the world.

I wave to them, and Lola immediately turns her eyes to me. She waves back and smiles. She gets up slowly and then climbs off the bed and runs towards me. I put my finger to my lips to let her know to be quiet. She nods her little head, and she beams at me while I try to run my hand through her hair.

I try to get Liam to come to me, but he shakes his head and cuddles back into Mia's side. I don't think he wants to leave her side. I smile and slowly squat down to Lola's level so I can talk to her without waking her mommy and daddy.

"Do you want to have a snack?" I whisper.

Lola smile widens and she frantically nods her head. I kiss her forehead and lead her out of the bedroom. I shut the door quietly as Lola runs off towards Christian.

"Snack," she says to Christian. Lola is hugging his legs and giggles up at him. He smiles down at her.

"Okay, little one," he taps her nose, and she giggles again.

I put together some celery and peanut butter for her to munch on. I place them on the table, and she nibbles on the celery stick as she looks around the room curiously. Liam emerges from the bedroom a few seconds later. He sees the food on the table and runs over to it, and immediately tries to grab one off the plate.

"Sit down, Liam, sweetheart," I croon.

He nods and sits down as I hand him a celery stick and he shoves it into this mouth. I smile and go get them a glass of milk each. Christian is at the stove, getting ready to make the adults some pancakes.

I hand the kids their milk and leave them to eat while I help Christian make the food. We both snack on the celery while we make the pancake batter. Christian cooks the bacon and sausage. I place a roll of biscuits in the oven as well.

Mia and Ethan both walk out of the room hand in hand when we are setting the table twenty minutes later. Their hair is wet, so it looks like they both decided to take a shower. I frown when I see they put the same clothes on that they had on before.

"Mia, let me get you some clean clothes, and I can put those in the washer," I offer, and she smiles gratefully.

"That would be great. Thank you, Ana," She sniffles.

I smile, and they both walk back into the bedroom after they give the kids a kiss on their foreheads. I hand them both a few robes and they get undressed in the bathroom. I pick out a T-shirt and yoga pants for Mia and place them on the bed. I open Christian's drawer and get Ethan a pair of his boxers, white T-shirt, and a pair of sweatpants.

They both walk out, and I tell them they can wear the clothes that are on the bed. They nod and hand me their dirty clothes. I walk out of the room and give them some privacy so they can change.

After I put their clothes in the washer, I walk out of the laundry room and finally sit down to eat. We all sit and eat the food and make small talk. Ethan keeps his head down most of the time. I think he is embarrassed, and I don't understand why. He shouldn't be embarrassed. We were in their shoes not too long ago, and I know how it feels like you are taking advantage of someone else's kindness.

I take Ethan's hand in mine and squeeze it to let him know that he is not taking advantage of us. He looks up at me and blushes when I give him a warm smile. He smiles back and squeezes my hand.

Christian shakes his head and finishes eating his food. After we are all done eating, we move into the living room. The bastards didn't break the TV thankfully, so we are able to sit down and watch something.

Mia and Ethan decide they want to give the kids a bath about thirty minutes into the cartoons that we are watching. I nod and tell them they are more than welcome to use the shower again.

They brought one bag with them, and they are all the kid's clothes. I frown a little at the fact that they didn't bring their clothes with them and only the kid's things. They even brought a few toys and books for them. _Why don't they have their stuff? Did they lose them?_

After thirty minutes, they emerge from the bedroom. The kids are all clean and in their pajama's. Lola is wearing a Disney Princess pink nightgown and Liam is dressed in a Mickey Mouse pajama shirt and thin black and white striped pants.

"Thank you," Mia mouths at me, and I mouth _your welcome_ back.

We sit down and continue to watch cartoons until it's time for dinner.

* * *

After a spaghetti dinner, we all get ready for bed. I walk into the laundry room and take out a thin sheet and a few blankets so I can put them on the floor. We don't have anywhere else for them to sleep, so the kids are going to take the couch and Mia, and Ethan are going to sleep on the floor.

I wanted to offer all four of them the master bed, but since I am pregnant, Christian wouldn't hear of it. Mia and Ethan said they would be more than fine on the floor since it is better than sleeping on the cold, wet concrete floor. I tried not to cry when Mia told me that they had slept on the ground the night before.

We get the kids settled on the couch, each of them is laying on each end and Christian and I kiss them goodnight. Mia hugs me hard after I lay the blankets on the kids.

"Thank you for taking us in. I will never forget you guys," she whispers in my ear, and I suddenly feel a few tears on my shoulder.

I frown a little but smile and hug her back. "Don't worry, Mia. Everything will work out," I reassure her, and she tenses for a minute before she relaxes.

She lets me go and gives me a smile before kissing my cheek. Ethan awkwardly hugs me before he steps back. I smile at him.

Christian give Mia a hug and nods at Ethan before he places a hand on my back. They both lay down on the blankets that we set out for them and a few extra pillows we had in our hallway closet.

We say goodnight and walk to our bedroom and get ready for bed. Christian and I climb into bed, and he holds me while I snuggle into his chest.

"Do you think they will be okay?" I ask fearfully.

Today has been a long day, and I am worried about Mia. She has been acting weird today, and I don't know if it's because of the CPS issue or something else. I just hope she is okay.

"They will be okay. We will figure this shit out. Just go to sleep, it's been a long day," he sighs and kisses my hair.

I nod against his chest, and we both fall into a peaceful sleep.

* * *

I wake in the morning well rested and refreshed. I roll over and see Christian staring at me lovingly. His hair is in dismay, and his eyes are still heavy from sleep. I smile at him and lean over and give him a kiss.

"Morning, baby," he says as he runs a finger down my cheek.

"Morning," I smile and run my hand down his chest.

"We better get up and make breakfast for everyone," he sighs and gives me a weak smile.

I agree, and we both climb out of bed. I look at my phone and see it is 8:23 in the morning. _I wonder if the kids are awake already?_

We both walk out of the bedroom and see that the kids are up and watching cartoons. They are both together snuggled on the couch. I smile at the sight of them, but immediately frown deeply when I don't see Mia or Ethan anywhere.

I walk over to their makeshift bed on the floor and find it empty. Christian whips his head to mine and looks at me in shock. _Where are they?_

I then spot a lone piece of paper on the coffee table. I walk over to it slowly and lean over and pick it up.

My eyes widen, and my mouth opens in surprise when I see what the paper says.

' _We're so sorry. Please, take care of Lola and Liam. We know they will be safe with you.'_

I look up at Christian, and he snatches the paper out of my hands and his head whips to mine, and we both stare at each other in absolute shock.

They left.

* * *

 _ **AN:**_ _ **Thanks for following and reviewing.**_


	26. Chapter 25

_**One Week Later**_

 _ **Ana**_

"Go watch Television, Lola. I will be right out, okay?" I say through the door of the bathroom.

"Tay," I hear her sniffles and the pitter patter of little feet as they run away from the door.

I sigh tiredly and wipe my mouth with some toilet paper after vomiting for the second time today. I cross my hands on the closed toilet seat and rest my head on them.

It's been a week since Mia, and Ethan up and suddenly left their kids, and it's been extremely stressful.

The day they left was tremendously emotional for both of us. I think we both sat on the sofa for over three hours in shock, just staring at the front door wondering what the hell just happened.

I cannot believe that Mia and Ethan just up and left their kids. _What is wrong with them?_ _Why would they abandon their children and not tell us why or where they were going?_

I know it has something to do with CPS, and them being scared that they would take their children away from them. That doesn't explain why they would just abandon their own kids.

I guess that explains Mia's weird behavior before going to bed that night, and why they bought the kids' stuff over and not theirs.

I don't know what we are going to do. The kids are missing their parents, and they are having nightmares at night. It's affecting Lola more than Liam, because she is such a daddy's girl, that she yells out at night wanting her father.

Christian and I barely have gotten any sleep due to Lola sneaking into our bed. Sometimes nothing calms her down, so she spends half the night screaming, crying or kicking us from the middle of our bed. The apartment manager has even gotten several complaints from our neighbors due to the noise. He sympathizes with us, but he told us that if it happens again, that we will be getting kicked out of the apartment.

I sigh and slowly get up from the toilet. I'm 24 weeks today, and my next doctor's appointment is a few days away. My morning sickness stopped around 13 weeks, and for the last three days, it started again. I have had abdominal pain, lower back pain, and even swelling in my hand and feet for the last few days now.

To be honest, I am scared. I am afraid because the stress of caring for two small children is taking a toll on me. I know it's not the children's fault because they just miss their parents, but I don't know what the hell I am doing. Most of the time, I just want to pull my hair out at the constant yelling, crying and screaming.

Christian doesn't know what is going on with me due to the nausea and vomiting returning in the morning after he leaves and magically gone when he gets home.

Christian had to go back to work two days after Mia and Ethan left. They told him he could take off a few more days, but since we have the kids now, we needed the money.

I walk to the sink and turn on the faucet. I cup some cold water into my palm and wash my face and neck. The water feels amazing on my skin as I cup some more water and run it over my face once again. I wash my mouth out and brush my teeth.

I groan when I hear Lola trying to rattle the locked bathroom door. She starts crying and then bangs her fist on it. I wipe my mouth with a hand towel and hurriedly unlock and walk out of the bathroom.

Lola is standing there in her pajama's clutching her teddy bear with tears streaming down her face as her green eyes stare up at me.

I carefully lean down on my knees and run my hand through her hair. "What's the matter, Lola?"

"Da," her little lip trembles and her eyes fill with more tears.

I close my eyes and sigh. I hate to see the children struggle like this. It hurts me to see them wanting their parents, and I cannot do a single damn thing about the situation.

I open my eyes and her tears run down her face as she stares at me. I give her a weak smile and rub my thumb under her eyes.

"Mommy and daddy had to go away for a few days, but they will be back soon. Okay, sweetheart," I say gently.

She just stares at me and clutches her teddy bear to her chest and nuzzles her nose against the bear's ear. She's only fifteen months old, so I don't even know if she understands what I am saying to her. All she knows is her mom and dad are not here, and she misses them.

I smile weakly and kiss her forehead. "Come on, let's go get some food."

* * *

"Hey," I smile when I see Christian walk through the front door.

"Hi," he says distracted while glancing down at his phone.

I frown and continue to rock a sleeping Lola. She has been fussy ever since the episode before lunch. She started crying again an hour ago, and the only thing that seemed to calm her was to rock her gently in my lap. She finally fell asleep ten minutes ago.

Christian doesn't look up from his phone while he closes the door. He frowns down at the phone when he walks through the living room straight to the bedroom without even looking at me. _Well, it is nice to see you too._ I think sarcastically.

I sigh and lean my head back on the couch and continue to rock her in my arms.

Twenty minutes later, Christian finally comes out of the bathroom. He changed out of his clothes to sleep pants and a white T-shirt, and his hair is also damp. He sits down on the sofa next to Liam, and his eyes stay glued to the TV. I grit my teeth and roll my eyes annoyed at his distant behavior.

He finally knowledge's me when he turns his eyes away from the TV. He frowns, and his eyes go straight to Lola's sleeping form on my lap.

"What's the matter with her?" he nods to her.

 _That's all he has to say? What's wrong with her? You got to be kidding me._

"What do you think? She misses her dad, Christian," I snap.

He sighs and shakes his head. "Have you considered what we talked about a few days ago?"

 _Are you serious?_

"That is all you have to say? You barely said hello, and you just up and left the room right when you got home!" I raise my voice and then regret it when Lola suddenly stirs in my lap.

I rock her back and forth, so she doesn't wake up, but her eyes open up anyway. She looks around the room confused for a second before she suddenly bursts into tears. I groan and place her against my chest and rock her once again.

Liam kicks the coffee table and yells at Lola to be quiet.

"That is enough, Liam! Stop kicking the table," Christian snaps at Liam causing him to cower over to me in fear.

"Christian!" I say outraged. He's never raised his voice to the kids. _What the hell is his problem?_

"What! If we have done what I suggested, then we wouldn't be having this problem now would we?" he hisses through his teeth and shoots up from the couch and storms in the bedroom and slams the door.

I continue to rock a crying Lola while Liam places his hands over his ears and continues to watch TV. I lean my head back and try not to cry myself.

I'm rocking her, and suddenly I start to feel very uncomfortable. I start to get hot, and my vision blurs for a second causing me to panic instantly. I take a deep breath and close my eyes, hoping the sudden dizziness to disappear.

After a few seconds, I finally calm down enough and open my eyes. Lola has at last cooled down, and Liam has taken his hands away from his ears and laughs at the cartoons he is watching.

I breathe a sigh of relief and place Lola on the cushion beside Liam. She curls up into a ball and starts to suck on her thumb. She watches the cartoons with watery eyes.

I walk to the front door and lock it before I leave the room and enter the bedroom. I close the door and see Christian on his side of the bed, with his head in his hands. I close my eyes for a second and walk towards him and sit next to him. He doesn't say anything or move; he just continues to sit there with his head in his hands.

"Why are you being like this?" I murmur.

I don't know what his problem is. He just gets home from work and basically ignores me. He sighs annoyed and runs his hand through his hair and looks up at me with narrowed eyes.

"Have you seen yourself lately?"

I frown and suddenly hurt that this would be the first thing he asked me. I sit up straight and glare at him.

"Of course I have seen myself lately. What the hell does that supposed to mean?"

He grits his teeth. "You look more and more stressed out as time goes on. Why won't you consider the fact that these kids would be better off with someone else?"

I sigh annoyed and run my hand down my face.

Christian has been telling me that we need to call CPS about the kids and what Mia and Ethan did. Since I am pregnant, and that we don't have the means to care for two more people, that we need to call the police and report them.

Truthfully, I thought he was crazy. I couldn't digest the fact that he would just throw those children in the system and be done with it. I know that having them here is not ideal, given the fact that we are just now getting on our feet, but I couldn't just abandon those kids. I couldn't abandon them just like their parents did to them.

Christian knows our time in the system, and how awful it was when we were growing up. We didn't have stability, going to foster home to foster home every few months. Some kids were awful to others, always beating them up, and stealing their money when they got money from their jobs after school. I don't want that for Lola and Liam. I don't want them to have to go through what we went through.

I look up at Christian and glare at him. "I am not going to call CPS. We can't abandon them, Christian."

"We can't take care of those kids, Anastasia. Look what it is doing to you," he shoots up from the bed and glares down at me.

"I am fine. I have been a little stressed out, but we will be in the same predicament when the baby gets here," I nearly shout at him.

"Ah, yes, our baby. _Our child_. Those two are not ours, and we have our own baby to think about. We need to call it in, Anastasia."

"I am not calling CPS. I won't have those children thrown into the system. Remember what it was like?" I say outraged.

"It's not our job to be parents to them. We can't take care of them, Anastasia. We can barely take care of ourselves, let alone be responsible for two other kids!" he shouts causing me to jump.

"We will be okay. I am not calling CPS, Christian," I yell and immediately regret it when the room starts to spin.

I clutch my head and sway a little and Christian panics before running over to me and takes me into his arms.

"Baby, what is wrong?" he says concerned and looks me over.

"I'm just dizzy that is all. Let go of me," I push him away and sit back down on the bed.

I take a deep breath, and Christian runs his hands down his face and groans miserably.

"Anastasia, please. I know you are thinking you are doing the right thing but look at you. You are too stressed out, and the baby is becoming affected. Please, you will stop being so stubborn," he pleads with me while tugging his hair with both of his hands.

I put my hands on either side of my lap and stare down at the bed. I close my eyes and try to calm down.

After a few seconds, Christian sighs and sits down next to me. He leans over and places his elbows on his knees and stares out the window. We sit there in silence for a few moments before I decide to break it.

"Why won't you call your father?" I blurt out.

His head shoots up, and he stares at me dumbfounded. "What?"

"You need to call your father," I murmur.

He shakes his head in astonishment. "Where did that come from? That has nothing to do with anything."

"They could help us," I shrug.

He stands up and stares at me like I have grown three heads. "I am not calling any of them. Especially not asking for help. All we were was a charity case to them, and I am not doing that again," he hisses.

"They can help us," I stand up and plead with him.

He shakes his head and scoff at me. "I am not calling them. End of discussion," he snaps.

"Well, I am not calling CPS. End of discussion," I snap back and turn on my heel and stomp to the bathroom.

He growls at me, but I ignore him and slam the door. I sit on the toilet and put my head in my hands. Deep down I know calling CPS would be the better option, but I can't put those kids in the system. I would hate to see them suffering out there with complete strangers.

I also know that I am being unreasonable, and a little voice in the head keeps saying that the kids will be better off with someone else, but I can't seem to go through with it. I would feel horrible that I would just abandon them. I know that Mia and Ethan trusted us to take care of their kids, and deep down I don't want them to hate us for turning their children over. _Yeah, but look what they did to you? You have a baby, and do you think they cared about your situation or feelings?_

The nagging voice races through my head, but I ignore it and push the thoughts out of my head. I know they abandoned them and ran away, but I can't do the same. We just need to figure it out and wait it out for them to get back. _I mean, they have to come back eventually, right? So that things will calm down?_

I groan and suddenly feel like shit for yelling at Christian. I know he means well, and he is looking out for our baby. I want the same, but I just can't call the authorities. We need just to stick it out for now.

I sigh and walk out of the bathroom to find the bedroom empty. I rub my bump and get dressed in a pair of blue pajama pants and a blue long-sleeved shirt that matches the bottoms. I walk out of the bedroom and see Christian in the kitchen making dinner.

I sigh once again before walking over to him. The kids are still watching cartoons in the living room.

I walk up to Christian and snake my arms around his waist. He stiffens for a second then relaxes. I put my head in the middle of his back and sigh.

"I'm sorry," I murmur.

He stiffens again, and I groan against his back. _He's still mad._

I let him go, and he stops cooking and turns around. He sighs and runs a hand down his face. "Ana, I don't want to keep fighting with you about this. We need to figure out something because this cannot go on like this any longer. We need to start thinking about the baby and our future," he implores me with his eyes.

I sigh and bite my lip and think about what we need to do. I look over at the kids and see they are still watching cartoons with not a care in the world. I close my eyes and look back over to Christian. My shoulders slump, and I am about to open my mouth to say something, but a knock on the door startles us.

I frown over my shoulder and Christian does the same. He walks to the door and opens it revealing two police officers.

"Christian Grey?" one of the officers asks. I jump back a little before tiptoeing to the kids and get them off the sofa quietly while Christian closes the front door a little, so they won't see the kids.

I don't know if they are here for the kids or something else, but I don't want them seeing the kids just yet. I get Lola and Liam into our bedroom and put my finger to my lips to tell them to be quiet.

"Can you two stay in here until Christian and I come and get you?" I say.

They both stare up at me with their same green eyes and nod their heads.

I smile and tell them to go sit on our bed until I return to come get them. I shut the door and walk out into the living room. _Oh, please let them be quiet._ Christian and the police officers are now standing in the kitchen.

"I'm sorry to intrude on you at this hour, but we have some information for you on the break in last week," the women officer says as she sits down on one of the kitchen chairs.

I nod at her hesitantly and look at Christian. He gestures for me to come sit down, and I walk towards him and sit on his lap.

"It's fine. What did you find out?" Christian says as he places his hands on the top of my bump.

"Well, we found the two men who were involved, do you recognize these two individuals?" the younger officer with black hair and deep brown eyes pushes two photos towards us.

I frown when Christian picks up a headshot of one of the men. My eyes widen when I see that it is, in fact, the guy that I saw the day in the snow. I pick up the other headshot and sure enough, it is the same guys.

"I've seen them before," I say to myself, then cringe when I realize I said that out loud.

Christian stiffens and then frowns down at me. "What do you mean you have seen them? Where?"

I bite my lip and let the headshot float down onto the table and sigh. I should have told him earlier. I know I will get a talking to after they leave, but I am prepared to for him to go thermal nuclear on me.

I look up at Christian and give him a guilty smile. His lips form a thin line, and he gives me a look to tell me that I am in need of some explaining to do later. I nod at him then turn my attention to the officers who both have a notepad ready.

I sit there and tell the officers what I know and where I have seen them before. They both nod and write down everything I say. When I am done, Christian looks like he is going to go off any second. I mouth _I'm sorry_ to him, and he shakes his head.

"Okay. Well, that explains some of the reasons why. We found out from two witnesses that they heard one of those men saying that they were going to break in and see if they could find anything worth of value," the officer explains, and I frown the entire time. _Worth of value?_

The officer continues. "They also claimed that they saw a few expensive cars in your assigned parking spots a few times. The two men, who are in these photos confessed to seeing people come out of your apartment a few times over the last month. They also admitted to seeing those people have money due to their clothes, jewelry, and cars. They thought that was a good opportunity to break in when you weren't home. I think that explains the spray paint on your living room wall," he points to the graffiti.

I frown deeply and look at the wall where the crossed-out word _Rich_ is still displayed. _That's why they broke in? They thought that we had money because they saw Grace and Grayson helping us move?_

Christian shoots up from his seat and stares at the officers in bewilderment. "So, what you are telling me is that some assholes saw people who had money come out of our apartment and just decided to break in because they thought we had what they had?"

"I'm afraid so, Mr. Grey," the women officer nods at him.

I cup my cheek with my hand and sigh. I can't believe this. We had this happen to us because some dickheads thought we had some things worth stealing? _How wrong can someone be?_ I shake my head in amazement at what they just told us.

"Are those bastards going to pay for this?" Christian hisses and I come out of my thoughts.

"Yes, they both are being charged with breaking and entering. They will be sentenced in the morning," the officer explains.

Christian nods and I breathe a sigh of relief.

"We also want to ask if you two know an Ethan and a Mia Kavanagh?"

We both stiffen and I pale instantly. _Why would they bring them up? Do they know the kids are here?_

"Why are you asking?" Christian clears his throat.

"We had gotten a tip from a few neighbors who said they saw two children living with you that possibly matched the children's description. Also, the manager of your apartment building told us that he had gotten several complaints of noise disturbance when we gathered information about your case. Furthermore, a Mr. Kavanagh has been trying to get a hold of his son. Apparently, they are concerned about their grandchildren and their well-being. Would you happen to know where Mr. and Mrs. Kavanaghs whereabouts?" the officer says and I want to scoff.

Those two do not give a rat's ass about their grandkids. _Are they the ones who called CPS on them? Shit, what are we going to tell them?_

"Even _if_ we did have kids here, how would they know that those were the Kavanagh kids?" Christian frowns and ignores their last question on where they are.

"We understand that you were in the same shelter with Mr. and Mrs. Kavanagh, and Mr. Kavanagh's parents saw you with their son and grandkids on numerous occasions," he explains.

Christian's sighs and I look over at him nervously. "Yes, we knew each other, but we haven't seen them since we moved here. What is going on with their kids?"

"We cannot disclose that information, but we would appreciate it if you do see Mr. or Mrs. Kavanagh, please call us at this number," he says while sliding a card over to us.

We both nod and they sit there staring us at impassively. I squirm in his lap as Christian clears his throat nervously. The officers look around the apartment, and I look around as well. The kid's things are in our room because I gave them a bath earlier, so their bag and their toys are in our bathroom. _Thank God. It doesn't look like any kids live here at the moment._

The police officers nod at each other and stand up. "Thank you for speaking with us. Please, call us if you make contact with them. We would want to ensure the children are all right. We would appreciate it. Have a good evening," they gather their stuff and walk to the door.

Christian kisses my hair and places me on the chair and walks them out. I sigh deeply and bury my head in my hands at all the information and also grateful that they didn't spot the kids.

Christian shuts the door and turns towards me. I lift my head from my hands and stare at him feeling utterly defeated. He puts his hands on his hips and shakes his head.

"There is no fucking way I am going to talk to them now. It's because of them that we had most of our stuff stolen in the first place," he hisses.

"Christian, please, the kids-," I start to say, but he cuts me off.

"No, Anastasia. We need to seriously think about what we are going to do because I don't feel like going to jail and leaving you here all alone," he growls.

I nod my head and look down at my knotted fingers.

"Good. Let's eat," he straightens up and heads towards the kitchen while I head to the bedroom to get Lola and Liam.

* * *

 _ **Two Days Later**_

"Anastasia Steele?"

"Right here," I say as I raise my hand.

The nurse smiles and motions for me to come through the back office. She frowns when she sees the two kids sitting next to me. I get up and take both of their hands and walk towards the nurse.

It's been a few days since the police officers came to our apartment. It's still been stressful, but thankfully, Lola has not been inconsolable like she was in the beginning. She has been sleeping more often and getting up less at night. She still has been having nightmares, but she has not been yelling or screaming during the nighttime which we are grateful.

The manager said one more noise disturbance, and we will be kicked out, and I have been extremely nervous about that. I lose sleep over the possibility of living on the streets again, and I don't want to go back. Every small sound that comes from the living room where the kids are sleeping always keeps me up because I never know if she is going to break down crying or not.

I have a taste of what normalcy is, and I don't want to lose it. I just hope that things work out, and everything goes back to normal soon.

Christian couldn't make the appointment due to a significant building in downtown the company is re-constructing right now, so I am here at my 24-week appointment alone with the kids.

I get to the back room and tell Liam to sit on the chair that Christian usually occupies while I sit Lola down next to me on the bed.

I smooth down her hair and straighten her clothes. Lola is wearing a gray onesie with cute little dogs all over it, blue pants and a blue jacket. Liam is wearing a pair of his only jeans, a long-sleeved plaid shirt, and a gray hoodie. They only have a few clothes between the two of them, so I have to wash their clothes every few days. We are also almost out of diapers, and we don't have enough money to get some more until payday which still a few days away.

I sigh miserably as I think about what the hell we are going to do. The nurse notices my expression and smiles sympathetically at me before she picks up my chart. "Are you babysitting today?" she suddenly asks over the clipboard.

"Um, yeah," I lie. I don't want her to know what is going on.

"That's good. How have you been?" The nurse smiles while writing something down on the clipboard.

"I've been all right," I shrug.

"Experiencing any more nausea or anything?" she asks while she sets up the blood pressure cuff.

"Um, yeah somewhat," I bite my lip and look up at her.

She frowns and then places the cuff on my upper arm. "Well, that's not unusual to still have morning sickness. Some women experience it throughout the whole pregnancy, so make sure you eat small meals throughout the day and some crackers in the morning to settle your stomach. Try to drink more fluids if at all possible. We don't want you to get dehydrated," she explains as she takes my blood pressure and stares down at her watch.

I nod and watch her. She frowns deeply when the cuff stops, and she takes it off my arm. "Well, your blood pressure is extremely high, so we need to let the doctor know about that so we can have a game plan to bring it back to a reasonable level. I would need a urine sample from you," she smiles weakly at me and hands me a cup.

I stand up and then frown when I look at the kids. _I can't just leave them here._

"It's okay, I can watch them for you," the nurse says while she writes something down on my chart. I smile gratefully and tell the kids to be good while I am gone.

I pee in the cup and wash my hands. I walk out and give her the cup back, and she performs the test that they usually do when I get here. She frowns again, and write the results down.

"I will get the doctor. He will be right in," she gives me a tight smile and then leaves with my chart.

I stand there afraid of what is going on. She didn't look at that happy when she left the room. My palms are suddenly sweaty, and my vision gets blurry once more. I sway on my feet but catch myself on the door before I can fall. I amble towards the bed while holding my bump. I sit down and take a deep breath. Lola is staring at me curiously for a second before going back to playing with her teddy bear. Liam is busy looking through one of the children's books that they keep in here. I close my eyes and rub my bump and breathe deeply.

The doctor comes into the room five minutes later. "Hello, Miss. Steele," he greets me.

"Hello," I smile. The dizziness has stopped, but I am getting concerned about these symptoms.

"Well, I wanted to talk to you about what we found in your results," he says while he sits down on the rolling chair and takes off his glasses.

I run my hands down my pants nervously and nod at him to continue.

"We found some high levels of protein in your urine, and your blood pressure is tremendously high. Now, this looks like the warning signs of Preeclampsia, which is a very serious condition…,"

I pale at what he is telling me.

 _Preeclampsia?_

 _Serious condition? Oh, no._

* * *

 ** _AN: I know Ana is being extremely unreasonable. I feel is though Ana is at a rock and a hard place, but it's easy for Christian just to call CPS and be done with it. The story is stated as Angst, so it will continue, but don't worry, it will all work out in the end. Sometimes bad things happen again and again before things turn the way they are supposed to be._**

 ** _Also, no the break in was not due to Jack, but I think all of you have the answer to who called CPS._**

 ** _Thanks for the reviews/follows/favorites. Hope everyone had a good New Years._**

 ** _Pinterest page is under my profile name._**

 ** _P.S. The story: The Elliot Files by AaronThMi, is slowly being worked on, so hopefully he will have an update posted soon._**

 ** _Till next time._**


	27. Chapter 26

_**Ana**_

"Liam, let's go," I say sternly.

He stares at me innocently as he rams his toy car into the railing of the stairs and then smiles at me.

I scowl and carefully walk Lola down the snowy stairs, and grab Liam's hand. I huff when he starts throwing a massive tantrum. _Ugh!_

"That is enough, Liam. It's time to go inside," I say firmly.

He continues to throw a fit while I drag them both upstairs to the apartment.

I let go of his hand so I can get my keys out of my purse. I am about to put the keys in the lock when Liam suddenly runs off back down the stairs.

"Liam!" I shout and go back after him. "Get back here, right now!"

I walk down the stairs as fast as I can. I finally get on the ground when Liam sits down on the curb and crossed his arms.

"You do not just run off like that, Liam! I told you it was time to go inside. Now, I am not going to tell you again. Let's go," I shout at him.

He shakes his head sullenly. I scowl and grab his elbow and pick him up. He starts yelling and screaming while kicking me on the legs. I flinch when he hits the back of my knee, almost knocking me over.

I see two people who are walking dogs, stop and stare at me while Liam continues to yell and scream.

"Liam, that is enough!" I yell, and he finally stops screaming.

I start to pant as I walk up the stairs. Lola is standing right where I left her while sucking her thumb.

I set Liam down on the ground. "Now, stay here," I say more firmly.

He nods his head with tears in his eyes. I sigh and try to calm down. They have never acted like this before. It's getting more and more frustrating as the days go by, and I don't know how I am going to handle this when the baby arrives.

I finally get the kids inside and watching a movie; so I can have a little bit of _me_ time. I lock up the front door and set the keys on top of the fridge so the kids can't find them. Wouldn't want them to unlock the door and run out of the apartment.

I tell them I will be right back and they nod and continue to watch the movie I put on for them.

I walk into the bathroom and close the door. I lean my head back and take a deep breath.

The rest of my appointment today went all right. The doctor gave me some pamphlets to take home and read everything we need to know about preeclampsia. He also did some tests and would call me back when the results come in a few days.

He also ordered an ultrasound, and everything is going well with the baby as what he could see.

In the meantime, the doctor wanted me to try to rest as much as I can, and try to lay on my left side at night or when taking naps. He wants me to come in for an appointment every two weeks instead of every four weeks.

I also had to do a glucose screening test which I had to drink this sweet soda liquid. The two nurses told me that it would probably taste disgusting since all pregnant women do not really care for the taste of the stuff. To be honest, it didn't taste that bad to me personally, just sort of watered down orange soda. I had to sit there for an hour, and after that, they took my blood.

It was a long appointment, and the kids got reckless and started acting out half way through the glucose screening. I am just glad all is over and done with.

I sigh tiredly as I get undressed to take a long hot shower.

I get out and get dressed into some comfy pajamas and a pair of long gray socks. I brush out my long hair before I come out of the bedroom. The kids are cuddled together still watching the movie quietly.

I walk into the kitchen and start to make dinner. I look at the clock and see that it is almost five o'clock. Christian should be home soon. I take out all the ingredients that I would need to make oven baked chicken.

I am just about to put in the chicken in the oven when the front door opens. Christian walks in and closes the door. I smile at him when he takes off his jacket and gloves.

I walk over to him and put my arms around his neck and kiss him.

"How was your day?" I ask while running my hands through his hair.

"Same as yesterday. Very busy," he sighs and puts his arms around my waist.

"I'm sorry," I say as I give him another kiss.

He shrugs, and we stand there holding each other in silence like we do every day after he gets home from work. I put my head on his chest as he rubs my back.

Suddenly, my eyes fly open, and I lean back quickly. I look up at Christian in shock. He frowns at me.

"What's wrong?"

I look down at my belly and start to laugh. He frowns deeply and looks down at my stomach.

"Is it the baby? What happened?" he starts to panic.

"Oh, my God, Christian. The baby just kicked." I giggle as I rub my belly.

Christian's eyes widen, and his jaw hits the floor. He gasps and his hands fly to my stomach.

We stand there for a few seconds in silence to see if the baby would kick again. Our eyes are full while we both beam at each other while we wait.

Christian suddenly gets to his knees and places his lips on my belly. I smile as I run my hand through his hair. He cups my belly with both of his hands and says, "Come on, buddy. Kick again for daddy."

Tears prick to my eyes as he sits there and rubs my stomach with his palms. I gasp again when the baby suddenly kicks me again. The kick was right near my belly button. Christian's eyes sparkle as he smiles down at where he kicked.

"Wow, that feels weird," I giggle down at him, and he chuckles.

 _Oh, my, God. This feels so unreal._ This is the first time the baby has kicked. I thought we would have felt the baby move already, but the doctor said it could take a while for a first time mom to feel their baby kick or move. He said that it usually happens closer to twenty-five weeks, and right now, I am twenty-four weeks.

I am so happy that Christian was here when the baby decided to kick. I am glad he was here to experience our son kick for the first time, and not at work.

"Hey, little guy. I love you so much already," he says against my swollen stomach.

I smile down at him while I try not to start crying at how sweet he is being. I didn't have a shadow of a doubt on how much he loves this baby already, but this is the first time he has talked to the baby. He usually would just lay there and caress my stomach before bed but never spoke to him.

He's going to be an excellent father.

"Oh, baby," he coos as he kisses my stomach once more.

I sigh contently for the first time today. He smiles up at me before rubbing my belly one last time and gets up off the floor.

He takes my head in his hands and kisses me. I tug on his hair as he runs his hands down my back and squeezes my ass. I moan into his mouth, and he walks us backward until my back hits the counter.

He kisses me more urgently and soon enough we are practically dry humping in the kitchen. I pant when he kisses my neck. I moan out loud as he licks and sucks on the sensitive spot under my ear. His hands fly to my sweatpants and cups my naked sex. I moan more loudly when he circles my clit with his fingers.

"Do you want to get fucked baby?" he whispers into my ear and then nips me on my earlobe.

"Yes," I say breathlessly as he continues to rub my clit with his fingers.

I hurriedly start to unbutton his pants, but before I can push them down his legs, we hear a loud bang. We jump apart and see Liam hitting his toy car on the wall, and Lola still has her eyes glued to the screen.

I completely forgot they were there. Thank god, Liam did that because they would have seen us having sex right in the kitchen.

"Shit, I forgot they were sitting there," he sighs and adjusts himself.

"Yeah, me too," I nod.

"I should go change. I'll be back, baby," Christian kisses my forehead, and I nod.

I turn around and continue to cook dinner while Christian walks towards the bedroom to change clothes.

* * *

"How did your appointment go?" Christian asks as we sit at the dinner table eating dinner.

I sigh and pick at my chicken. I didn't want to tell him what was going on since I don't even know for sure if I have developed preeclampsia, but I know I need to least let him know what is going on.

"Fine, but the doctor found something," I murmur.

He drops his fork in surprise and his silverware clatters onto his plate. "Found something? What's wrong?"

"Nothing at the moment. They just found some protein in my urine, and my blood pressure was a little high," I explain hesitantly as I cut up Liam's chicken.

"What do you mean by high? Like dangerously high or slightly high?" he says wide-eyed.

"Really high," I whisper and stare down at my plate.

He mumbles under his breath and gets up to his feet and starts to pace the living room. The kids continue to shovel the food into their mouths not even paying attention to Christian.

"God, damn it, Ana. It's because of the stress. You're stressed because you have to take care of these two. We need to call CPS because this cannot go on any longer. What else did he say?" he snaps.

My shoulders slump forward. I knew he was going to bring up the CPS issue, but what can I do now? What if calling the authorities is the best thing to do? I read through the pamphlets and found out all the risks when having preeclampsia. The complications scared the hell out of me, and I didn't want to risk the health of the baby.

I hate to see the kids in the system, but this is killing me. The lack of sleep, the symptoms that I have been experiencing, the continued chaos of taking care of two kids are becoming too stressful.

I sigh and bite my lip. "He said there was a possibility that I could have developed preeclampsia."

"Fuck!" he suddenly shouts.

"Christian-," I start to say, but he cuts me off.

"No, we are calling CPS tomorrow. End of discussion!" he snaps, and I shut my mouth.

I look towards the kids, and they are still shoveling food into their mouths. Tears glisten in my eyes when I watch them eat their food.

I don't want to call them, but I think Christian is right. I hate what we are about to do, but I can't put the baby at risk anymore. I don't want to lose my baby over this. I put my head in my hands and feel so selfish. I know that what we are doing is best for everyone, but what else can we do?

"Okay," I whisper, and he sighs in relief.

He walks over to me and kisses my forehead. "This is what is best for us, baby. Everything will be okay," he whispers against my head.

I nod, and I put my arms around his waist and lean my head against his stomach. He runs his hands through my hair soothingly. I lean back, and he lets me go. He walks over to his chair and sits down, and we both resume eating in silence.

* * *

That night in bed we lie there silently just staring at each other with both of us laying on our sides.

"We're doing the right thing baby," he whispers.

"I love you," I whisper.

"I love you more," he whispers back.

He runs a finger down the side of my face, and I close my eyes at his touch. The feeling of needing to become closer to him is suddenly too overwhelming. I hold the side of my stomach as I scoot more towards him.

I lean over and kiss him on the lips. I run a hand through his hair as he deepens the kiss. He rolls on top of me and grinds his erection into my sex. I moan into his mouth.

He slowly strips me out of my pajama's. When I am completely naked, he sits up and takes his shirt off revealing his muscular chest and arms. He then takes off his pants and lays back down on top of me.

He traces his tongue around the edge of my mouth before slipping it past my lips. My eyes roll in the back of my head when he guides his cock into my sex.

He moves his hips slowly causing me to let out a loud moan.

"Oh, Christian," I say breathlessly while he slowly thrusts into me.

He continues his slow, gentle pace as he leaves open mouth kisses on the side of my neck. I run my hands down his back. I put my legs around his waist as he grinds into me.

Tears start to run down my cheeks as Christian caresses my stomach softly. I throw my head back as I feel my climax building.

"Come on, baby," he moans into my mouth.

He starts grinding into me harder as he caresses me all over. He reaches down between us and starts playing with my clit.

My mouth drops open in ecstasy when I finally fall over the edge. Christian quickly leans up and pounds into me prolonging my orgasm. He halts and throws his head back and screams my name as he cums.

After a few minutes, our breathing returns to normal and Christian rolls off of me. He lays on his side and wipes the tears from my cheeks.

"Tell me our baby is going to be okay," I whimper as our foreheads rest against one another.

"Our baby is going to be fine," he whispers, and I nod as fresh tears spill from my eyes.

He takes me into his arms and rocks me back and forth as I weep into his chest. He whispers into my ear that everything is going to be okay over and over again.

The last thing I remember before falling asleep is hoping that our baby will be okay and that everything is going to work out in the end.

* * *

"Are you ready?" Christian asks me the next day.

We are sitting opposite each other at the kitchen table while Lola and Liam are busy watching the morning cartoons. Christian's cell phone is laying in the middle of the table.

We both have been sitting in silence just staring at the phone. I hate that we have to call CPS, but I know this is for the best.

"Yes," I murmur and give him a small smile.

He takes a deep breath and picks up the phone. He takes out a piece of paper from his pocket and on that paper is the number for CPS. He starts to dial the number, but a loud knock on the door startles both of us.

We both frown at each other before he puts the phone down and gets up off his chair. _Who the heck is at the door?_

Christian walks past the kids and opens the door. My eyes widen when I see the landlord that owns the complex standing in front of us. _What is he doing here?_

"Good morning. Can I have a word with both of you?" he says hesitantly.

"Um, yeah. Come in," Christian gestures him inside.

He stands by the door while I take Christian's offered hand. The landlord is a short older man with a bald head and walks with a slight limp. His brown eyes stare at us with a sorrowful expression. He has a piece of pink paper in his hands which he keeps playing with.

I start to get nervous when he looks towards the kids and back at us a few times. After a few minutes of tense silence, he finally speaks.

"I'm sorry to have to do this, but I have to evict you," his voice wavers.

I gasp loudly and Christian tenses beside me. _Evicted? Why?_ I whip my head over to Christian, and he looks baffled.

"Whatever for?" he says astounded after a few beats.

"I told you a few times that you need to keep the noise level down and last night was the last straw. We had another noise complaint late last night as they heard loud noises coming from your apartment throughout the whole evening. Unfortunately, I have no choice but to evict you, due to the noise and after several warnings. I will give you until tonight to move out. Again, I am sorry," he explains and gives Christian the pink piece of paper.

Christian yanks the paper out of his hands and angrily stares down at the paper. It says _EVICTION NOTICE_ in big black bold letters at the top and a few paragraphs below it that explains the reason why.

 _I cannot believe this!_ I am speechless right now. _How could he do this to us?_ _We weren't even loud last night! Lola even slept through the night! This is not possible!_

"This is impossible! We didn't even make a peep last night! This has to be a mistake!" Christian yells causing the kids to jump.

"There is no mistake, Mr. Grey, please, have your things out of the apartment before nightfall," he starts to sweat and tries to make a quick escape.

He doesn't get very far because Christian blocks his way so he can't get to the door.

"I told you that we didn't make any noise last night. Whoever said that we did, is obviously lying," he growls, and the landlord sighs.

"Mr. Grey, there is a strict noise policy. It states in the contract that after three noise complaints, the landlord has the right to evict you from the apartment complex. Other witnesses had heard noise coming from this apartment all night. I am not going to tell you again, please, have your things out of here by tonight," he says calmly and walks around Christian and closes our door.

I stand there dumbfounded as Christian stares down at the paper in shock.

"Christian?" I whisper as I walk towards him.

He doesn't react or look at me. He just stands there staring at the eviction notice that he has in a tight grip in his hand.

"We're homeless again," he says with no emotion in his voice.

I whimper and try to hold him, but he steps back. I stand there staring at him wide eyed. He finally lifts his head slowly and the look of devastation on his face. His eyes glisten with unshed tears as mine run down my cheeks.

He closes his eyes, and after a second they fly open, and his gray eyes harden in anger. He yells suddenly causing me to jump back in shock when he crumples up the paper and throws it across the room.

"Get your shit together," he growls and stomps towards the bedroom.

I stare at his retreating back in horror. I look towards the kids, and they are staring at me in confusion. I jump when Christian stomps back into the living room.

My mouth drops open when he yells at the kids to get their shit together. "Christian," I say in astonishment.

"I said get your shit together. You know what? No! We are going to be living on the streets again, so just pack a few clothes and your shower shit. That goes for you too!" he snaps and points to the kids.

Lola and Liam lips tremble, and then they both start to cry. I run over to them and try to comfort them. Christian huffs angrily and throws his hands in the air. I sit down on the sofa when he goes back into the bedroom. I try to calm them down, but it's not working.

Christian scared them, and they won't stop crying.

"Don't worry; I did your bag. Let's go!" Christian snaps when he walks back into the living room.

He is carrying two bags. He throws them down on the floor while he snatches up his wallet and phone.

"Christian, he gave us until tonight. Why can't we just stay put for a bit, and then-," I try to say, but he cuts me off again.

"I don't want to stay here until tonight. There is no point in staying here. If we go now, or later on today, it doesn't matter! We're homeless again either way. So stop whining and crying and get those brats ready!" he yells at me.

I whimper as tears run down my face. He slams things around as he gathers our stuff. The kids cry harder as I lead them to the bedroom to change them into their clothes.

The room is a mess of clothes on the floor from Christian throwing our things into a suitcase. I get them dressed and into their jackets and shoes. I sniffle, and my hands shake as I put on some clothes myself. I put my hair into a messy bun and put on my snow boots and jacket.

We walk out of the living room after I take a look around our bedroom and try not to cry.

Christian is standing by the front door staring at the wall emotionless.

He hears me coming into the room and snatches the suitcases and a trash bag off of the ground.

"I packed the rest of our food into this trash bag and the clothes. Let's get the fuck out of here," he snaps and yanks the door open and stomps out of the apartment.

Liam and Lola's hand are in mine as I stand there heartbroken. I look around our first apartment for the last time.

I cannot believe this is happening right now. I can't believe that we have to leave and go live on the streets once again.

 _When will this ever end?_

 _When will we catch a break?_

 _When will something work out for us?_

 _Are we always going to end up living like this? Homeless and alone?_

Tears blur my vision as I stare around the room again. I jump when I hear Christian yell my name somewhere outside. I walk forward slowly and lead the kids out of the apartment. They walk down the stairs where Christian is standing. His back is to me, and his hands are balled into fists at his side.

I sniffle as I turn around and slowly close the apartment door. I take my hand off the knob and stare down at the keys in my hand. I lock the door, and my hand grips the gold key.

I close my eyes and suddenly see the horror of the dream that I had a while ago.

Our baby is born. Hungry, cold and we have no way to feed him while we live in an abandoned house. I weep while the image of that dream becomes a reality.

A reality that I thought that we would never have again.

My knees nearly buckle when the reality of our situation hits me at full force.

We are homeless once again, and I don't know if we are going to be able to survive it this time.

* * *

 _ **AN: Spoiler...They won't be in this situation for long.**_

 _ **Thank you for following and reviewing.**_


	28. Chapter 27

_**Ana**_

"Where the hell is that fucking bus!?" Christian growls while pacing in front of us.

We have been sitting at the bus stop for almost an hour, and it still has not shown up yet.

The kids are shivering due to the drizzle of snow coming down on us. They are huddled together on the bench beside me. I try to keep them warm with one of my other jackets that I brought with me.

I shiver myself and rub my arms. I have my big blue jacket, gloves, and hat on but I am still freezing. I bite my lip and stare at Christian while he continues to pace in front of me.

I still can't believe that we just got evicted. How is that even possible? Why would someone say that they heard us making noise when we weren't?

I don't know what we are going to do. When we didn't have anywhere to go, we would just break into houses and or abandoned ones. It was easy when there were two of us, but now we have two kids, both under three years old.

I sigh and try to warm myself up as well as the kids. Lola starts to whine and fuss while Liam's eyes are closed in annoyance. I take off her little pink hat and run my hand through her hair to try to calm her down.

I look over to Christian, and he is too busy pacing up and down the sidewalk to notice the kids.

We need to call someone. We need help, and it's starting to get colder out here, and the bus is clearly not going to come for a while, if ever. Nobody is around, due to the freezing temperature, and it's getting late.

I bite my lip and hesitate for a second before biting the bullet and asking him. "Maybe the bus is not coming, Christian. Why don't we call someone so they can help us?" I murmur.

He scoffs and shakes his head but does not stop his pacing. He ignores me, and I'm starting to get pissed that he is not communicating with me.

"Christian?" I call out his name.

He finally stops pacing and picks up the bags from the ground.

"Fine. Let's walk to the shelter, and if we see a bus, then we will get on," he says annoyed.

I look up at him with a frown. "Walk? Christian, we need to call someone."

"We're not calling them, Anastasia. I know what you are thinking, so don't. Let's go!" he hisses and his eyes narrow into slits.

I huff angrily and get up from the bench. _Stubborn ass Jerk!_ I get the kids off the bench and strode past him without looking at him. I'm so pissed off at him right now. This would all be over if we called someone to pick us up.

Christian follows behind me as I walk determinedly along the sidewalk. It's right then that I decide to call someone when Christian is not with me. I don't care if he whines and gets pissed off and throws an adult tantrum, I am calling, and that will be the end of it!

I am getting tired of his bullshit, and I have reached my limit on his stubborn ass self. With someone so adamant about me being stress-free, he really doesn't care that the kids and I are walking in the freezing cold to a shelter that is nearly forty-five minutes away.

The kids have a hard time keeping up with my long strides, so I close my eyes and try to slow my pace. I open them and walk forward at a more leisurely pace, so the kids can keep up with me.

We stop walking multiple times due to the kids needing to catch a break before we start walking again. My earlier adrenaline rush I had earlier has slowly dwindled causing me to become more exhausted as time goes on quickly.

My lower back is starting to ache as well as my legs and feet. I look over at the kids and their faces are red their noses are starting to run. The wind has picked up a little causing us all to shiver and huddle closer to one another.

Christian stares straight ahead the entire time and doesn't pay attention to anyone who is out on the streets. We do not see one bus the whole time we are walking to the shelter.

I look over at the kids, and they are starting to get tired. Lola's eyes are starting to droop, so I stop and pick her up. Her head immediately goes to my shoulder, and her eyes close while she shivers.

Christian stops walking and look over his shoulder. Liam takes hold of my leg and tightens his fingers around the fabric of my jeans.

"The kids are tired. Can we go somewhere and rest for a while?" My teeth chatter while I try to talk.

"We don't have time to stop and rest. We need to get to the shelter, Anastasia," he says annoyed.

"The kids are exhausted, Christian! We need to rest for a little bit, and I am pregnant if you had forgotten. I'm tired. I need to slow down," I snap.

I'm probably being dramatic, but I am still so pissed at him. The kids are tired, and my back is killing me, I need to stop and sit down for a while.

My blood pressure is more than likely through the roof right now. Luckily, I don't have the other symptoms that I experienced before.

Christian runs his hand through his hair and sighs. "Okay. There are a few houses over there. Let's see if one of them are open," he points the few abandoned houses to our right.

I nod and adjust Lola on my hip and follow Christian while Liam walks beside me.

We all stand in front of a brick two-story house. It's a light brick house with a thick blanket of snow covering the roof. The second-floor windows are boarded up with plywood, and the first-floor windows are all shattered. The front porch that is made of wood is falling apart and looks like it will fall down at any moment. The other house on the left is also left abandoned but is much worse than the one we are standing in front of.

"This would have to do," Christian says distractedly while looking around the empty street. "We should get inside," he says while walking forward with Liam.

I walk towards the porch and Christian places a foot on the top step of the steps and pushes himself up onto the rickety porch. He balances himself before turning around. He holds his hand out for Liam. "Take my hand," he says curtly.

Liam gingerly holds out his hand and Christian grasps onto it firmly. I put a hand on Liam's back to help him while Christian pulls him onto the porch.

"Give me her," Christian nods to Lola.

I stand on my tippy toes and carefully hand a sleeping Lola to Christian's waiting arms. He leans down and scoops her up.

"Give me a second, I am going to go set them down in the house, and I will come back out to help you up," he says.

I nod and watch them walk into the house. I pick up the bags and try to lift them onto the porch, which I do unsuccessfully. Christian comes out and shakes his head in annoyance when he spots me and jumps down off the porch.

"I will do that. Stop lifting those! They are too heavy," he scolds me, and I roll my eyes.

He throws our things onto the porch and jumps back up. He squats down and opens his arms. I put both my hands on his shoulders as he puts his under my arms pits and picks me up.

Once I am on the ground, he kisses my forehead and leads me into the house. I look around the vacant room as Christian closes the door.

The interior is not as bad as some we have seen in the past. The blue paint that is on the walls are starting to chip; there is a torn up couch by the dirty window in the living room. There is also a chair sitting by the other window. The hardwood floors have clutter and old newspapers scarred around the entire living room. The stairs that lead to the second floor is directly in front of us.

Christian walks into the living room and sets our bags down by the wall by the door.

"Let's all get some rest for a few hours. I will set the alarm so we can leave and head to the shelter," Christian explains.

He unzips one of our bags and takes out a thin sheet. He places it on the couch and picks up Lola and Liam and sets them on the sofa. They immediately close their eyes and fall asleep.

Christian walks out of the living room and goes to find us something to sleep on. I take off my hat and wait for Christian to come back.

He comes back into the room, and he is carrying a twin worn out mattress. My eyes widen, and he gives me a weak smile when he notices me staring at the mattress.

"I'm sorry babe, I don't want you sleeping on the floor," he explains as he puts it on the floor by the sofa.

I shake my head. "It's fine," I say suddenly exhausted. My back hurts, and I'm very tired, so I really don't care what I sleep on right now.

I lay down and curl up trying to keep warm. Christian lays down and sets the alarm on his phone. He sets it down on the floor and cuddles up beside me so were spooning. I sigh when he kisses the side of my head.

"Sleep baby," he whispers into my ear.

I close my heavy eyes and fall into a deep sleep.

* * *

"Fuck! Anastasia, wake up!"

I suddenly hear Christian's frantic voice call out to me. My eyes fly open, and I look around the room confused.

"What?" I say while sitting up and rubbing my eyes.

"My fucking alarm didn't go off. The shelter is about to close in five minutes. We need to go. Now!" he says frantically while gathering our stuff.

My eyes widen, and I hurriedly stand up and gather the kids. "What time is it? I thought you set the alarm?" _Did we sleep that long?_

"I did. I didn't hear it. Fuck!" he yells while digging through the bags.

"What's wrong?" I say confused.

"My wallet is not here. The front door was opened when I woke up. I set it down beside me, and now it's fucking gone!" he snaps.

My eyes glisten as he throws the bags down and he punches the nearest wall with his fist. He pants as he stands there with his back towards us.

"Let's go," he snaps again and picks up our things.

Christian once again helps us down the worn steps. Once we are all on the ground, Christian races forward with the bags to the dark street. I power walk behind him with the kids holding each of my hands.

I look around, and the street and the snow has finally stopped falling, and the grounds are wet and slippery. Homeless men and women litter the streets the closer we get to the shelter. The shelter is not in a bad neighborhood, but it's not too good either.

We see the familiar brick building in the distance. After five minutes, we finally get to the front door, and my eyes widen in fear when we set the doors closed. When they are still letting people in, the doors usually remain open, and the manager is out front. _Oh, my, God, were too late._

"Fuck!" Christian shouts and bangs on the door with his fist.

The kids jump up beside me and hide behind my legs. The door opens, and a man that I have never seen before pokes his head out.

"We're filled to capacity. You would have to come back tomorrow," the man shakes his head.

I whimper, and my eyes fill with tears to know that we now have nowhere to go.

"We need to come in. We have two small children, and my girlfriend is pregnant," Christian all but pleads.

The man looks at Christian sympathetically before sighing. "I'm very sorry, but there is no room. I'm sorry, but you know these shelters fill up quickly when it's winter time."

"Where is Mrs. Shana? Let me speak to her?" Christian demands.

"Mrs. Shana does not work here anymore. I'm sorry, but you need to leave." _What?_

"Come on man! You can't leave us out here! It's freezing; there must be room somewhere?" Christian tugs at his hair in frustration.

"I'm sorry. There is no room. You can try the shelter on Peterboro. They close their doors in twenty minutes. That is the best I can do," he says before he shuts and locks the doors.

We stand there in shock for a few minutes. _What are we going to do now?_ We have no money and no place to sleep. I bite my lip to avoid my lip from trembling. Christian slowly picks up the bags and turns towards me.

His face is full of devastation and fear of our current situation. My shoulders slump while I stare at his sorrowful expression. "Let's go," he murmurs and walks forward.

I nod and follow him down the dark street towards the bus stop. I breathe a sigh of relief when we see the bus in the distance. Christian looks at me over his shoulder and gives me a weak smile.

The shelter is fifteen miles from here, and it is closing soon, so it's very doubtful that they will be open when we finally get there.

After we walk off the wonderfully heated bus, we are standing in front of the Peterboro temporary shelter. The doors are closed on this one too, and we already know that the place is as well closed for tonight.

Christian walks up to the door and knocks. I stand dejected behind him with the kids on either side of me.

The door opens, and an older woman with graying hair answers the door. I can't hear what she says when Christian asks her if they have room. I see her shake her head and Christian's shoulders slump, and I know that they are full too.

She closes the door, and Christian stands there staring at the door for a few minutes without moving a muscle. Tears run down my face, and I look around and see a few homeless men laying on the ground huddled under dirty blankets and old newspapers.

I look up and notice all the brightly lit stars twinkling in the endless black sky above us.

 _Why does this have to happen to us? What did we do to deserve this?_ I'm so tired of going through this. I hate to live like this.

We have nothing now. We have no home. No money, and no food.

I open my eyes and see that Christian finally has turned around and he is looking straight at me. His eyes are red and puffy. He has been crying.

I let go of the kid's hands and walk up to him while holding my bump. I bring him into my arms, and we stand there holding each other for a few minutes in silence.

He rubs my stomach as I rub his back soothingly.

Christian sighs deeply as he lets me go. He picks up the bags and takes my hand again. I tell Liam and Lola to follow us, and they walk beside me.

"Where are we going to go?" I sniffle and wipe my tears from my eyes.

"I don't know. The fuckers didn't take my phone, so I could call Elliot," he sighs and let's go of my hand.

He takes his phone out of his pocket and dials his number. I hope he picks up, and he can help us out. I really don't want to sleep on the streets tonight.

"Fuck! It went straight to voicemail," he hisses and leaves a message to call him back as soon as he can, and that it is an emergency.

We haven't talked to Elliot in a few days. Christian hasn't told him what is going on with the kids because he didn't want the information to be passed along to the Grey's since Addison is their daughter.

Christian knows they would come to help us in a heartbeat, and he still refuses to talk to them, let alone see them.

Christian shoves his phone back into this pocket and runs a hand through his hair in aggravation.

"Let's try to go back to that house and wait for him to call us back," he says while walking forward.

I sigh suddenly tired and emotionally drained even though we all woke up a little while ago. I take the kids hands and follow Christian to the nearest bus stop.

* * *

"Christian," I say with uncertainty when looking at the house that we were in earlier.

Christian curses under his breath when we see a few men and a woman go into the vacant house. One of the men stay outside keeping an eye out for any police.

They are obviously drug dealers and their customers using the house for buying.

"It looks like we are not sleeping there. Let's get out of here," Christian whispers and tells us to back away slowly, so they won't notice us.

Usually drug dealers and drug addicts would try to cause a scene when they are spotted selling or buying, so it's best if you stay away from them.

We walk hurriedly down the street, and I look over my shoulder and see that the man did not notice us because he starts smoking a cigarette, and is looking the opposite way.

"What are we going to do now?" I say as my teeth begin to chatter from the cold.

We have now been walking for twenty minutes, and the kids are starting to freeze again. We need to get them someplace warm.

"I don't know. Elliot still hasn't called me back. We need to find somewhere to rest," he shakes his head and looks around.

We have been walking down a busy street where several homeless people sleep at. We stop at a crosswalk where a man is sleeping on a cardboard box that is placed on the ground. He coughs and adjusts his sleeping bag and turns over.

We walk forward and cross the street. We walk down the sidewalk and pass many homeless men and women sleeping beside the brick buildings.

Off in the distance, I see a man who is pushing a shopping cart full of tin cans, and it immediately reminds me of Jason. I miss him, and I often wonder where he is. We haven't seen him since we left the shelter and I wonder if he is there right now or if he is out on the streets?

"Let's stop here," Christian brings me out of my thoughts.

He walks down an alley. There is water on the ground and several dumpsters on the opposite side of the brick building. I don't see any people sleeping down here, so hopefully, it's safe to stay here and rest until Elliot calls us back.

Christian sets the bags down and takes out the sheet from earlier and places it on the ground. The kids lay down on the blanket and curl up with each other. I sit down, and Christian sits down beside me. He opens his arms, and I cuddle up next to him. He sighs and kisses my head.

We sit there for a while listening to people on the streets of Detroit. I don't know how long we wait for his phone to ring before Christian falls asleep beside me.

I bite my lip and slowly climb out of his arms so I don't wake him and slide forward. I take Christian's phone and see no new missed calls. I sigh and look over at the kids. They are fast asleep as well as Christian.

The phone suddenly beeps, and I whip my head towards the sound. The phone beeps one more time, and the display shows _low battery_ before it shuts off completely.

I gasp in surprise and my eyes water once more. _Shit!_

I quickly take out my phone and see that my battery is low as well. I look around and see that it is slowly starting to snow again. _Fuck! We need to get out of here!_

We need help. I don't want to sleep here all night. I don't want the kids to live like this. We need help, and I know the person I need to call.

I dial the number and wait anxiously for them to pick up.

My heart plummets when I get an automated voicemail. I look over my shoulder at Christian while I listen to the voicemail.

Christian's head is resting on the brick of a building. His face is peaceful, and his breathing is even. I bite my lip when the beep comes for me to leave a message.

I turn back around and close my eyes before speaking softly so I don't wake them up.

"Hi Grace, it's Ana."

* * *

 _ **AN: Thank you for reading.**_


	29. Chapter 28

_**Ana**_

"Ana, baby, wake up," Christian whispers in my ear.

I groan and start to shiver when I open my eyes immediately. It's still dark out, but I see a hint of dawn in the distance. It has stopped snowing, and all I see is a thin layer of snow on the ground with puddles of water throughout the alley.

We are still leaning on the hard brick wall. I frown when I see a thick green blanket covering my body. I see that Christian has one as well. He frowns and places the blanket on the ground and sits up and stretches his arms above his head.

I turn my head and see the kids huddled under the same colored blanket still fast asleep.

"Christian?"

"Yeah?" he groans as he stretches.

"Where did we get these?" I frown down at the blanket.

He shakes his head. "I have no idea. Just woke up and saw them. We need to get going," His voice is still heavy with sleep.

I nod and yawn. I take off the blanket and remember my phone call last night. I peek up at Christian, and he is distracted by a few people walking past the alley.

I take this time to pick up my phone and see if Grace has called me yet. I curse under my breath when I see the phone is dead. I remember giving Grace a message to tell her that we need help and to give me a callback. I had just enough time to text Priscilla to also give me a call back before my phone's battery went dead.

"Lola, Liam. Wake up," I gently shake the kids.

They both open their eyes and shiver when I take off the blanket and gently pick up a groggy Lola. Liam stands up and rubs his eyes with his glove-covered hand.

"Ana, don't pick her up. I don't want you to hurt yourself," Christian scolds me.

I roll my eyes and place her head on my shoulder. "Christian, she is cold, and she just woke up. Plus, she is not that heavy."

He sighs and nods his head. He picks up our bags off the ground. I walk over to him and immediately yelp when I see a figure sneak up on Christian's back.

Christian jumps back and the bags go flying to the ground when he blocks us with his arms.

"Who's there?" he hisses.

"Boo," A familiar deep voice says.

My eyes widen, and I place Lola on the ground, and she automatically snuggles next to her brother. I move around Christian and see Jason standing there with a small smirk.

"Jason?"

I squeal and launch myself at him. I hug him hard, and he awkwardly pats my back.

"What are you doing here?" I say after I release him.

He clears his throat before saying, "I sometimes stay around here."

I nod and smile. Christian comes up and puts his arm around my shoulder. "Good to see you, man," Christian says while shaking his hand.

Jason nods and turns around and starts picking up the blankets.

I frown. "Are those yours?"

"Yes," he nods and folds them up neatly and places them in the grocery cart beside him.

"I didn't want you guys to get cold. What were you doing here anyways? I thought you guys had an apartment now?" he asks while folding the last blanket.

Christian sighs and runs his hand through his hair. "It's a long story."

Jason cocks his eyebrow at him before nodding his head. "Let's get out of here," he says.

He pushes the cart full of cans and walks forwards without a backward glance.

Christian ushers us forward, and I tell the kids to follow us.

"Let's go sit down somewhere for a while and try to charge our phones," Christian says as he takes his phone out of his pocket and sighs when he sees the black screen.

"I'm fine. I need to get going. See you guys around," Jason says while he pushes the cart in the opposite direction.

"Wait! You don't want to come with us?" I frown.

He shakes his head, "I have stuff to do," he says without looking at us.

"Please, Jason. Come with us," I beg.

We haven't seen Jason since we moved into our apartment. I would really like to catch up with him and talk. Plus, I want to tell him that we are having a boy.

"Like what? Collect more cans?" Christian chuckles.

He glares at Christian. Christian raises his hands and chuckles. I smile, and Jason shakes his head.

Jason clears his throat and fixes the scarf that he has around his neck.

"There is a McDonalds not far from here," Jason grumbles and turns the cart around and breezes past us.

Christian continues to chuckle, and I jab him in the side with my elbow. He smirks down at me, and we follow behind him.

* * *

We get to the nearest McDonalds ten minutes later. It's getting lighter outside, so the streets are starting to fill up with people.

Jason leaves the cart beside the door, and we all walk inside. The kid's eyes light up when they see the food. I feel like crap because I know we won't be able to get them anything to eat right now because Christian's wallet was stolen yesterday.

We all sit down at a booth at the back. They have some cartoons on one of the TV's, so the kids get settled on the booth as the TV distracts them.

Christian takes out his phone charger and plugs it into the wall next to the booth. I do the same to mine, and it takes a few minutes for the phone to power on.

I look up at Christian nervously when I see a few text messages from Grace, and a voice message. I also have fifteen missed calls from Grace and Carrick.

"Elliot got my message. He left a voicemail to give him a callback," Christian sighs and calls him back.

Jason pays us no attention. He keeps his eyes forward and scans the room.

I hear Elliot's raised voice coming from Christian's phone making him cringe.

"It's a long story, man. Can you come get us?" Christian sighs and rubs his eye.

"Yes…We're at the McDonalds' that were close to your old apartment…Yes…Okay," he continues to talk to Elliot.

I take the opportunity to call Grace back. I turn my back to Christian and hurriedly dial her number. I turn my head and see that Christian is still talking to Elliot.

She answers on the first ring. "Ana! Oh, thank God! We have been going out of our minds with worry. What happened? Are you guys alright?" She says in a panic.

"We're okay. We are sitting at the McDonald's on Jefferson Ave. Can you guys come pick us up?" I whisper into the phone.

"Yes, of course, we will. Carrick and I will be there soon," She says in relief and hangs up.

I put my phone down on the table just in time for Christian to finish his conversation with Elliot.

"He will be here in fifteen minutes," he sighs.

I nod my head. Christian kisses my temple and lays his head down on the table.

Christian is going to be pissed off that I called the Grey's, but right now we don't have any other choice. We need help, and I do not want to stay another night on the streets.

I turn my attention to Jason, and we start a conversation while we wait for the Grey's to get here.

* * *

Fifteen minutes later, I see a concerned Elliot running into the McDonalds. He hurriedly looks around the room and spots us in the back. He sighs relieved when I wave him over.

He is wearing blue skinny jeans, with a blue button up shirt, a brown jacket and a scarf, a brown beanie and brown boots. My eyes widen when I see Addison running into the front door after him.

She is wearing blue skinny jeans, an oversized white knit sweater, and black ankle boots.

"Oh, you're okay," she gasps and throws her arms around me.

I smile and hug her back. It's so good to see her. We haven't seen any of them since the whole thing went down at Grace and Carrick's house.

"How are you really?" She gazes into my eyes. A worried expression clouds her flawless face.

"Not good," I answer truthfully.

"Don't worry. We are going to get you out of here," she smiles and hugs me again.

I nod against her shoulder.

Addison turns towards the kids and gives me a confused look.

"Don't ask. I will tell you about it later," I put my hand up to stop her from asking.

I don't want to talk about Mia and Ethan right now. All I want to do is get us something to eat and get out of here.

Elliot is having a hushed conversation with Christian. He looks annoyed at what Elliot is telling him.

"Stop being an ass," I hear Elliot say.

Christian rolls his eyes and huffs in irritation.

"Oh," We suddenly hear a loud gasp.

Jason shoots up and is stands stock still at the loud gasp. I walk over to him, and rub his shoulder soothingly. He immediately relaxes.

After that, I see Grace, Carrick, Grayson and Priscilla running over to us. Grace is still dressed impeccable for a weekend. She is wearing blue flared jeans, a white blouse, and a brown cardigan under a thick white coat. Carrick is dressed in a simple white button up shirt, with blue jeans, and brown boots. Priscilla is wearing white jeans, a gray turtleneck sweater, gray suede boots, and a long gray coat. Grayson is dressed in a hunter green turtleneck, blue jeans, black boots and a long black wool coat.

They all look worried.

Christian's eyes widen is shock when he sees them. He grits his teeth and turns to glare at Elliot.

"I told you not to call them," Christian hisses.

"I didn't," Elliot huffs.

"I did," I say to Christian as Grace reaches me.

She throws her arms around me just as tightly as Addison did earlier. "Are you alright?" she whispers into my ear.

"I'm alright now," I chuckle and hug her back tightly.

I am so glad they are here. I know Christian is shooting daggers at me right now, but I don't care. I love him. Lord knows I love that man deeply, but right now, he is making poor choices with our safety, and we need help.

Carrick hugs me as well when Grace finally releases me.

"Hi, sweetie. I am so sorry I missed your call. I'm glad you are okay," Priscilla whispered into my ear.

"It's okay. I'm glad you guys came. I missed you," I try not to cry.

Priscilla has been such a good friend; I am happy they both came. I've sure missed her.

Grayson comes up to me and kisses me on the forehead. I smile and blush slightly when he squeezes my hand. Priscilla winks at me as she hugs his arm.

"Why are you here?" Christian glares at Carrick.

Carrick sighs and runs his hand through his hair. "Ana called and asked for our help. Of, course we would come. Son, I know you are mad at me right now, but we need to sit down and have a conversation finally. You obviously need help, and we want to help. For God sake! Your pregnant girlfriend and two children were sleeping in the alleyway last night! Please, let's talk this out," he begs.

Christian closes his eyes and turns around. He lowers his head and doesn't say anything. I look around and see people questionably looking over at our large group. I turn back and see that he still hasn't moved.

I sigh and walk up to him. I walk in front of him and try to get him to look at me. He finally raises his eyes to mine. He looks desolate.

"Christian, it's time to hear him out. I'm not sorry for calling them. We needed help, and you know it. I'm tired of you running from this. You need to get some closure finally. For our baby, please, just hear him out," I beg as I take his head into my hands.

He groans and nods his head. I smile and kiss him on the lips. "Thank you," I murmur and place my forehead on his.

"I'm sorry. I've been an ass. I don't want you to suffer. I love you, Ana. I'm sorry," he murmurs regretfully against my forehead.

"I love you too, Christian. Let's get out of here," I kiss his nose, and he hesitantly nods.

We both turn around and see our family staring at us in dismay.

Christian sighs and runs his hand through his hair. "Your right. We need to talk."

Carrick and Grace sag in relief. Elliot and Addison beam at us. Grayson gives us a small smile, and Priscilla's smile matches Elliot's.

Lola and Liam are not paying us any attention. They are still watching the TV. I go over to them and get their stuff ready. Grace comes over and helps me get the kids ready.

She leans over and whispers in my ear. "Where are Ethan and Mia?"

I sigh and put Lola's hat on her head. "Gone. I need your help in finding them," I whisper back to her.

Grace sighs and nods her head. She gives me a sympathetic smile and picks up her purse while holding onto Liam's hand.

"Are you ready, Liam?" I say down to him.

"Hunwy," he whines.

"I know baby boy. We are going somewhere to eat, okay?" I say down to him.

He nods his head and takes my other hand.

"Let's go get some breakfast," Grace smiles at all of us.

* * *

After a big breakfast, courtesy of Grace and Carrick, we all move towards separate cars. Christian, the kids and I load into Carrick's range rover.

Jason decided to head back to the shelter. I gave him a big hug, and Christian shook his hand before he left. I gave him Grace and Carrick's address so he can come visit us when the baby is born. I have a feeling that we are going to stay with them for now.

After our finally goodbyes to everyone, Carrick drives towards their house. Grace looks around her seat and smiles warmly at us. I smile back at her as Christian holds my hand. I look over at him, and he is staring out at the window impassively. The kids are sitting peacefully in the backseat. Lola is sitting in a car seat that Carrick had installed while we were at breakfast, and Liam is watching the passing scenery from his window.

We arrive at the house, and we all head inside. The house looks the same the last time we were here. Grace and Carrick take our bags and tells their house manager to take them up to the guest rooms.

"Liam, Lola, let's go check out your new bedrooms," Grace kneels at their level and smiles at them sweetly.

They both excitedly nod their heads and Grace laughs. She takes their hands and leads them to the stairs.

"Let's get comfortable, shall we?" Carrick gestures to the sofa.

We all sit down, and Carrick rubs his hands down his jeans nervously.

I squeeze Christian's hand, and he gives me a small smile.

Carrick starts by saying, "I'm sorry, Christian."

Christian sighs and squeezes my hand again before he lets go. "Maybe I overreacted slightly," he grumbles. I smile and rub his back.

"No, you didn't overreact. I can see why you thought that, Son. Grace and I didn't want to treat you like a charity case. All we wanted to do is get to know you and take care of you. We are now aware we went about it the wrong way. I'm sorry. Can you forgive me? Forgive us?" Carrick's voice shakes while he runs his hand down his pants once more.

Christian closes his eyes and looks out of the large window. We sit in silence for a while. I start to fidget when he doesn't say anything for a long while. I glance nervously at Carrick, and he is staring at Christian in dismay.

Christian gets up and starts to pace the floor. I sit up straight and rub my bump in apprehension. Carrick hangs his head when he still doesn't say anything.

I bite my lip and keep my eyes to Christian.

Christian stops pacing and looks over at Carrick impassively. Carrick is still looking down at his lap. What Christian says next shocks me.

"Dad," Christian blurts out.

Carrick's head shoots up and he stares at Christian is disbelief. "Yes?" He says hopefully.

Christian's mouth lifts into a small smile after a beat. Carrick beams at him and gets up off the sofa. He walks over to Christian and pats him on the shoulder. Christian finally smiles a genuine smile at him and does the same to him.

My eyes fill with tears at that moment. I spot Grace looking at her son and her husband with tears in her eyes, and her hand clutched to her mouth.

Grace walks over to them, and Carrick beams at her. I laugh with tears streaming down my face as they pull each other in a three-way hug.

Carrick laughs and tears fall from his eyes. He kisses Christians head and then Graces before closing his eyes in contentment.

I put both my hands on my bump and smile at how everything is falling into place.

Right now, I know that everything will be okay.

* * *

 _ **AN: Sorry for the delay in updating. Last week my computer's hard drive failed, due to my computer being thrown on the ground (got to love children and their tantrums), I lost everything, including this chapter. So after buying another computer, I had to catch up on homework so I didn't have time to update. I finally had time to finish this chapter today.**_

 _ **This chapter is shorter than my previous ones. Unfortunately new updates on both of my stories are going to be delayed. I had received some news a few weeks back(nothing bad) that is more than likely going to effect my updating. I will try to update as much as I can, but please bare with me since our RL is going to become more hectic as time goes on.**_

 _ **Rest assured, I will finish these two stories hopefully by the summer. If you read my husband's story, more than likely his will be delayed as well.**_

 ** _I know this one was short, and I will miss writing longer chapters, but right now, smaller chapters is all I can manage._**

 ** _Thank again for the reviews and PM's. Next chapter will probably have a small time jump._**

 ** _Excited about seeing Darker this week. I hope everyone has the chance to go see and enjoy our lovely Christian Grey and Anastasia Steele. :)_**

 ** _Till next time._**


	30. Chapter 29

_**Two Weeks Later**_

 _ **Ana**_

"Babe, I need to get going," Christian chuckles and then moan when I kiss down his chest.

"You can't. I want you again," I pout and look up at him.

"Two orgasms are not enough for you?" he quirks an eyebrow at me. His eyes are dancing with humor.

"Definitely not," I groan, and he laughs.

"What has gotten into you woman?" he chuckles as I continue to kiss down his chest.

I shrug and lick around his belly button causing his cock to grow harder.

I have been consistently turned on for the last five days. I can't seem to concentrate on anything else but having Christian inside of me. I go stir crazy waiting for him to come home from work so that I can jump his bones.

I have finally entered the point in pregnancy when my sex drive is off the charts. The other day, he fucked me twice before going to work that morning. I was in heaven that whole morning, but when lunch hit, the throbbing in my core started again. I was so turned on the rest of the day, I couldn't wait until he got home, so I tried to pleasure myself before Christian got home. For some reason, I couldn't get myself off, so I got frustrated gave up.

Finally, after a long, agonizing afternoon, Christian came home at six, and I immediately dragged him up to our room and rode his dick three times before I was finally sated.

The first three days, he definitely didn't seem to mind getting laid five times a day, but I can see the constant sex is starting to wear him down. _Give him a break, Ana!_

I stop kissing him when I get to his cock. I close my eyes and try to ignore the throbbing in my core. I know I need to give him a break, but I can't seem to help want him twenty/four seven.

I open my eyes and stare up at him. His head is thrown back, and he has a hand in my hair. He is panting, and his eyes are closed. I bite my lip when I see his hard cock start to twitch.

He opens his eyes and looks down at me. "Why did you stop?"

"I'm wearing you out too much," I shamefully shake my head.

"You are, but you got me all horny again," he pants.

"Are you sure?"

"Definitely," he drags me up by my arm and kisses me.

I moan into his mouth and line his cock up with my core and slide down onto him slowly. He stops kissing me and throws his head back in pleasure when I start to move my hips.

* * *

"Have a good day baby," he chuckles as he kisses my forehead.

I am sprawled out on the bed sated after our third, and final round of lovemaking. Christian immediately jumped up when I finally crawled off him.

Suddenly sleepy, I grunt my goodbye causing him to laugh and kiss my forehead one more time. He picks up his jacket, and he is out of the door.

I sigh contently and roll over and go back to sleep.

* * *

"Ana, honey, are you awake?" I hear Grace's voice causing my eyes to fly open.

I groan and rub my eyes when she knocks again. I look over at the alarm clock and see that it is after ten.

"Ana?" she calls again.

"Sorry, hang on!" I yell and slowly get out of bed and walk towards the door and open it.

"Hello, darling. Did I wake you?" Grace asks.

"Yeah, sorry I fell back asleep," I half-smile and try to comb my hair back from my face.

"It's alright. Have some food. Are you still up to go out shopping?" Her eyes light up.

 _Crap!_ I absolutely forgot that Grace wanted to take me baby shopping today.

"I'm sorry, I totally forgot about shopping. Just give me five minutes, and I will be right down," I say hurriedly while I run around the room and pick up the clothes that are piled on the floor.

"Take your time, darling," Grace says before she softly closes the door.

As I get dressed, I think back at the last two weeks that we have been here.

After the first night, Christian went back to work, and we decided to stay with the Grey's instead of them trying to get us a new apartment. We felt safe here, and I wanted Christian to get to know his father.

Christian agreed without hesitation. I can see that he felt guilty about pushing them away and being stubborn about our situation. Grace and Carrick understood why he was pushing them away and told him to forget about the past and focus on the future.

Since that day, Christian and Carrick's relationship has started to blossom. They began spending quality time together, and Carrick even took him fishing last weekend. It was Christian's first time fishing, and he loved it. They had so much fun that weekend that they are planning to take another trip out to the lake with Grayson and Elliot next weekend.

While they were on their fishing trip, Grace, Addison, Priscilla, Elena and I had a girl's weekend. We all went out shopping, went back to the salon to get our nails and hair done, and we also spent Saturday night pigging out on pizza, and chick flicks at Priscilla and Grayson's house. It was the most fun I had in a while, and I loved spending time with all of them.

We told Grace and Carrick what happened with Mia and Ethan, and to say they were shocked would be a big understatement. They never knew that Ethan's parents would call CPS on them. They knew Ethan's parents were looking for their kids, but they never knew that Mia and Ethan took off without their children.

Carrick told us that it was his legal obligation as a lawyer to call CPS and report the children's whereabouts. Carrick said that we both needed to go down to the police station and make a statement. He said that we could be possibly facing a fine or jail time for lying to the police about the children's whereabouts.

I was scared out of my mind because of that I didn't know what was going to happen. We both didn't want to go to jail for lying to the police, but we thought it was best at the time because we didn't want the kids to go into the system.

Carrick told us that he would do whatever he can so we wouldn't be facing any jail time. The worst that could happen is that we would just pay a fine.

Thankfully, that is what happened after being at the police station for almost four hours. After the police taken our statements, they decided not to press charges against us for keeping the children or lying to them about where the children were located.

We did have to pay a penalty that Carrick took care of it for us, which we are grateful for all his help.

Unfortunately, they had to take Lola and Liam. It was an emotional goodbye, but we knew that we had to let the children go because we couldn't care for them and they didn't belong to us. Carrick did everything he could for them, but the children had to be placed with their grandparents.

The scary thing was that Ethan's parents did want to press charges against us, but Grace and Carrick talked to them for over an hour, and in the end, they both ended up agreeing that they wouldn't press charges and that they just wanted their grandkids.

Grace told me that Ethan's parents had a "change of heart" and just wanted to get to know their grandchildren. Grace said that they felt guilty for letting the kids be out on the streets, so they did what they thought was best and called CPS on Mia and Ethan.

I call bullshit on that. I don't know why they would call CPS on them when all they have done was kick their own son to the curb when he was only a teenager. They never cared about their grandkids before, so why would they care now? It just doesn't make any sense.

I sigh when I think about the kids. I miss them and letting them go was hard, but we didn't have any choice. I hope they are doing okay and that they are at least happy and well cared for. I just hope Mia and Ethan show up soon, so they can get their kids back.

I would hate for anything to happen to them. Wherever they are, I hope they are safe.

I finally get dressed after reminiscing about the last two weeks for longer than necessary. Since it is almost springtime, and the weather is not too cold anymore, I decided to wear one of my new maternity dresses.

The dress is long and brown, and it shows off my almost 27-week bump. I also put on a long blue jean jacket since it's still a little cold outside and some black flats. I leave my hair down in waves, and I put on some light make-up.

After grabbing my purse, I head downstairs to see Addison and Priscilla waiting in the kitchen with Grace.

"Have some breakfast before we head out," Grace smiles as she sets a plate of pancakes in front of me.

I smile and listen to them talk while I eat. Grace wanted to take me out baby shopping today, and since I am getting farther along and we haven't been able to get anything yet, they wanted to help out and buy whatever the baby needed.

Christian and I agreed because we know that we wouldn't have the means to buy anything right now. Grace has been excited to go shopping ever since. To be honest, so am I.

After I finish eating, we all head out and head to the many baby stores that are in town.

* * *

We have been shopping for about two hours. Grace has purchased for me an infant car seat, stroller, a gray crib that has drawers on the bottom, diapers, bottles, a bedding set for the crib, a breast pump, bouncer, tons of baby clothes and other essentials that the baby needed.

I am wiped out, so I decide to sit down and let them continue to browse around the store and get more baby clothes that the baby probably doesn't need. I giggle when I see Addison going crazy with the clothes.

I rub my bump and smile at how much this baby is loved already.

I will be twenty-seven weeks tomorrow. I went to the doctor last week, and they said I did have preeclampsia, so they wanted me to come into the clinic every week to monitor my blood pressure. Since the last two weeks, my blood pressure has gone down drastically and has been down ever since. The doctor wanted me to take medication and to put me on bedrest, but to this day it hasn't been necessary since my blood pressure has been down.

I still need to take it easy for the rest of the pregnancy, so I usually take frequent breaks and make sure to drink lots of water during the day. Grace has been helping me since she is a doctor, so having her near has been great. She always makes sure that I take my blood pressure regularly and that I am getting the right nutrients and eating right.

She sure has been a godsend so far. It always makes me crack up a little bit because my mom is not here. I do think about her often, and I always wonder what she would be like if she never killed herself.

Wherever she is, I hope she is proud of me. She would have been a good grandmother. It's just sad because I will never know.

A tear escapes from my eye, and I hurriedly wipe it away. I take a deep breath and smile when Addison and Priscilla show off their picks for clothes to each other.

They're both very excited about becoming aunts.

"Ana, come look at these!" Addison giggles.

I laugh and get up and walk over to them. We all continue to browse through the store and Grace is busy talking with a sales assistant about what bassinet is the best to buy.

Priscilla is showing me the different baby shoes when I suddenly look over to my left and my eyes widen when I spot Kate looking at baby clothes a few feet away from us.

"Priscilla, look over there," I nudge her in the shoulder with mine.

She frowns and looks over to where I am pointing at. "What is she doing here?"

"I have no clue," I frown.

Addison stops looking at clothes when she spots Kate walking towards her.

Priscilla and I walk over to them.

"Kate? Hi, what are you doing here?" Addison frowns.

"Just browsing," she smiles and bites her lip.

Addison looks confused. "Why are you looking at baby clothes?"

"I might be expecting," She smiles after a few seconds.

Addison looks shocked and frankly so am I. _She's pregnant?_

"I…didn't even know you were dating anyone," Addison looks flabbergasted.

Kate shrugs and beams before biting her lip and browsing through the clothes once more.

"It's sort of new. Well, he's a great guy," she giggles and holds up a pink onesie with cute little teddy bears on it.

"Who is the father? I'm sorry…congratulations," Addison smiles and gives Kate a hug.

"Thank you. I'm so excited," she laughs and rubs her flat stomach.

"That's great. How far along are you?" Addison smiles tightly at her.

"I'm only five weeks. I found out a few days ago," Kate explains while gathering a couple of clothes off the rack.

Addison frowns. "Little early to buy clothes, though."

"Yes, but I have a feeling it is a girl, and I have the means to purchase clothes, so I am going to buy some," Kate shrugs.

"Okay. Well, I'll let you get back to it," Addison gives her another hug and Kate scurries off to look at the strollers.

We all stand there speechless. "That's weird. I didn't know she was going out with anyone. She always said she never wanted kids, and now she is excited? I don't get it," Addison shakes her head.

Priscilla shrugs. "Who cares. Let's get back to shopping."

Addison shrugs and continues to look at the boy's clothes. I frown and look at Kate who is talking to a sales associate about different car seats.

I shake my head and decide to forget about her. It's not my problem, so I leave it and walk over to Grace and we both look at the last of the baby things that are on her checklist, pay for them, and we leave the store to get something to eat for a late lunch.

* * *

 _ **AN: Hi there!**_

 _ **Update: We are moving in the beginning of next month, and we have been in the process of selling our house, trying to set up jobs, a new house, checking out of the military, and trying to juggle school on top of everything else has been stressful.**_

 _ **As of right now, this story and Double Devotion is still on hold for the time being, because next month is going to be crazy for us. After all the appointments and running around for the last three weeks, I finally had time to sit and write out the next update. If I do have time next month, I will try to update the next chapters. Transferring to civilian life is not easy.**_

 _ **Anyway, the angst is probably over for this story, but there will still be drama. I don't know how much longer this story will be, but It will have at least 10 more chapters.**_

 _ **Thank you all for the reviews and PM's for the last AN. I really do appreciate the support and understanding.**_

 _ **I hope to see you all soon. Thanks for hanging in there with me. :)**_

 _ **Pinterest is updated.**_


	31. Chapter 30

_**Ana**_

"This was quite a surprise," Christian whispers into my ear.

We are all sitting around the table eating dinner. Grayson, Priscilla, Elliot, and Addison are all sitting with us at the dining room table.

I put my fork down and frown over at him.

"What is?"

"This is the first time in a while that you haven't dragged me upstairs to have your wicked way with me," he smirks.

I blush and look around the table to see if anyone has overheard us, but everyone is eating and not paying us any attention.

I lean over to him and whisper into his ear, "I thought you could use a break."

"I did have a break, I was at work," he pouts.

I chuckle at him and shake my head. "Later."

"You bet you're cute little behind later," he whispers seductively in my ear.

I smile and bite my lip when he quickly nips at my earlobe. He smirks and continues to eat.

"How was shopping? Ana, did you get everything you needed?" Carrick smiles at me while he cuts into his steak.

"Yes, we did. Thank you. We appreciate it," I smile, and Christian takes hold of my hand.

"We're happy to help, Ana you know that," Carrick waves me off.

I smile and take a bite of my mash potatoes. _So, good!_

"I'm so excited! I cannot wait until he gets here," Addison jumps up and down in her seat.

"I second that," Carrick raises his hand and beams at her.

"Oh! We saw Kate at the baby store today," Addison shakes her head in disbelief.

Elliot stops eating and looks over at Addison with a confused look.

"Why would she be at a baby store?" he swallows hard.

"She said she was pregnant, which was strange because I didn't know she was seeing anybody," Addison shrugs.

Elliot drops his fork and curses under his breath. He suddenly looks agitated. Addison looks over at him with a deep frown.

"What?" she says.

Elliot takes a deep breath and rubs his hands over his face. "Nothing. I just saw her at that party awhile back. I saw her hanging around some guy that night. Maybe it was that guy who knocked her up," he smiles tightly at her.

"The one where I didn't go because I was sick?" Addison asks while taking a sip of her wine.

"Yeah, that one," he says quietly.

I frown at Elliot's odd behavior. _What is that all about?_

Elliot continues to eat while looking like he wants to murder someone, and Addison stares at him perplexed. The table is quiet, and the silence is starting to become uncomfortable.

Priscilla breaks the awkward silence. "Ana, have you decided on a name yet?"

I immediately smile as I look over at Christian. He smiles back at me and nods. Christian and I have talked about names for a couple of weeks, and we have finally decided on a name for our son.

I smile wider and look over at Carrick who is looking at us expectantly.

"We do. We decided on Carson Carrick Grey," I smile as I place my hand on my bump.

Everybody around the table gasp, except for Carrick whose eyes automatically turn glassy.

Grace clutches her hand to her mouth as tears spring to her eyes. Carrick looks down at his food and clears his throat before speaking.

"Good strong name," his says trying to contain his emotions.

I giggle as Christian smiles at his father.

"It's beautiful," Grace wipes her eyes as everyone around the table agrees.

"Thank you," I smile softly at Grace.

Christian squeezes my hand before he lets go to finish his food.

* * *

Twenty minutes later, we are all done with the main course. We sit around the table laughing and talking about anything and everything while enjoying a delicious cherry pie for dessert.

Suddenly, we hear the front door open, and a second later, Jack walks into the dining room. He is wearing a blue suit which means he probably came straight here from work. _Oh, great._

Christian tenses beside me when Jack walks towards the table. He looks beyond annoyed.

"Looks like I wasn't invited to the party," he scowls.

I roll my eyes and take a sip of my water.

"We tried to call you, dear, it's hard to get a hold of you these days," Grace sighs.

Jack shakes his head, and his expression softens. "I'm sorry, mother. Work has been crazy lately. I'll try to come by more."

"That would be wonderful. Have a seat. I will get you a plate," Grace beams at Jack and gets up.

Christian's jaw tightens while glaring at Jack.

Jack rolls his eyes and sits down next to Carrick. "Easy, bro. We're family now. We need to learn to get along, wouldn't you say?" He cocks an eyebrow at Christian.

I narrow my eyes at him as Christian snorts but doesn't say anything.

Carrick clears his throat and starts up a conversation with Jack. Grayson turns his head to look at us and gives Christian a nod telling him to let it go.

I rub Christian's back for a second before he relaxes and finishes his dessert. He gives me a small smile and then takes a sip of his water.

Grace comes back into the dining room and gives Jack his plate of food. "Thank you," Jack smiles and digs into his food.

I still don't trust Jack because of what he did to us at the benefit, but since we are all family now, I think it's in everybody's best interest for all of us to try to get along with each other. _Very doubtful, Ana._

"So, Jack, how is Leila?" Addison asks overly sweetly.

He stops eating and looks up at his sister. He swallows and takes a sip of his wine before answering. "She is fine, Addison. We haven't seen each other in a few days, but she's doing the same as always."

"Still out shopping with your credit card?" Addison rolls her eyes.

"Weren't you doing the same thing today?" Jack cocks an eyebrow.

"Shopping for our nephew, not for myself," she gestures towards me.

Jack narrows his eyes at her before they land on mine. He stares at me impassively for a few beats before nodding his head. "Congratulations to you both. I mean that."

I stare at him dumbfounded while Christian looks at him skeptically.

"Ah…thank you?" I frown. _Um…okay._

Jack nods and continues to eat. I look over at Christian warily before he shrugs and places his hand on my thigh. _How weird._

Everybody finishes dessert and Grace offer coffee to anyone who wants it.

I smile at Priscilla who is giggling and cuddling into Grayson's side as he laughs and kisses her neck. _Those two are the cutest couple._

I yawn and fight to keep my eyes open while everyone continues to talk around the table.

"Let's go, baby, you're tired," Christian whispers into my ear.

I nod, and we both get up from the table. We say goodnight to everyone before we head upstairs to our room. Before we get to our door, Christian stops and stands in front of the door that is directly beside our room.

"Come on," he smiles as he opens the door.

We walk in, and I smile as I look around the room that later will become our son's nursery. When we got home from shopping, Grayson had one of his workers come over to the house and give us paint samples that have been painted in rows on one of the walls. Christian and I decided on a cool gray color and an animal themed nursery.

"I cannot wait for the final result," I smile and lean my head against Christian's shoulder.

"Me too. Come, let's go to bed," he says as he kisses my temple and leads me out of the room.

* * *

When we get to our bedroom, we both start to strip out of our clothes before we head to the bathroom.

Christian walks over to the tub and turns on the faucet. While the tub starts to fill with water, he picks up one of the various bottles of bubble bath that is placed in the basket on the vanity and pours it into the water.

I immediately relax as the smell of lavender fills the air. When the tub is halfway full, he turns the water off and turns towards me. He smiles as he strides over to me.

His lips automatically lock onto mine as my arms go around his neck. Christian's hands fly to my ass and squeeze causing me to moan into his mouth. Our tongues dance with each other for a minute before he pulls away. I pant and grind my core into his erection causing him to moan against my mouth.

"Come on, before the water gets cold," he says before releasing me.

I walk towards the tub and carefully get into the warm bubbly water. Christian helps me sit down before sitting down behind me. I sigh contently while I lean back against Christian's chest.

He gently massages my shoulders causing me to groan. He chuckles and kisses my head. I sit up a little straighter so he can message my back.

After a few minutes, he stops rubbing my back and cups my breasts. I bite my lip and lean back against him. He kneads them with his strong hands, and I moan out loud in pleasure. He starts kissing my neck before gently biting my earlobe.

"Let's go to bed," he whispers in my ear.

I nod, and he quickly kisses my neck before helping me out of the tub. He pulls the plug from the tub before picking up a fluffy white towel from the towel warmer. He helps me dry off before leading me out of the bathroom.

I crawl into the bed while he dries himself off with the towel. I lean back against the pillows and watch him.

When he is done, he throws the towel on the floor and runs his hand through his wet hair. He gives me a wicked smile before slowly walking towards the bed. I automatically spread my legs as he crawls slowly over to me.

Christian stops and slowly shakes his head before gesturing that he wants me to turn around. I bite my lip and turn, so I am on all fours. Before I know it, he has his hands on my hips and is slamming into me and pumping into me at a fast pace.

"Fuck, baby," he moans as he continues to fuck me from behind.

"Christian, harder," I moan in ecstasy at the fast pace, but I want more.

He slams into me harder, giving me exactly what I want. He leans over and starts rubbing my clit causing me to fall over the edge immediately.

I yell out his name while he continues his grueling pace. After a few seconds, he hits his peak and cums long and hard into me before falling down beside me.

* * *

"Do you think Jack was sincere?" I ask Christian as he runs his fingers along my back.

"I doubt it," Christian snorts.

"That was odd. You, know him saying he is happy for us," I shake my head.

"I really doubt that fucker is happy for us," he grits his teeth.

I sigh and look up at him. "You know, he is your brother now," I say cautiously.

"And?" he frowns and looks down at me.

"I just think that maybe you two need to get along. Your family now, and maybe he is starting to see that you're not going anywhere," I shrug.

Christian sighs and rubs his eyes. "I don't know, Ana. I don't trust that prick, and I don't think that is going to change anytime soon."

"I know. It probably won't, but we all need to try to be civil towards each other."

Christian shakes his head and kisses my forehead. "We'll see. Let's get some sleep."

I nod and cuddle closer to Christian. He runs his hand soothingly through my hair causing me to fall into a deep sleep dreaming of our baby boy smiling and giggling as I chase him.

* * *

 _ **AN: Hi! Long time no see.**_

 _ **I know it's been awhile since I have updated, but I am trying to get back into writing since being gone for a few months.**_

 _ **I wrote that awhile back that I was feeling under the weather and that delayed updating. Well, that is because we found out that we are expecting our fourth child, and, IT'S A BOY!**_

 _ **I had horrible morning sickness, which I still have at 24 almost 25 weeks, and with everything else that was going on, I didn't have time to update.**_

 _ **We are now out of the military and in our home state. We sold our house in early May and moved, and hubby found an awesome job. It was hectic, but we are glad that things worked out. RL has calmed down a little, so I am hoping to return to writing this story and my other one.**_

 _ **Still finishing school as well, so please be patient with me with future updates since we still have a lot going on, but I promise I will finish these two stories.**_

 **This is for all who read my husband's story: The Elliot Files.**

 **Unfortunately, he has put that story on Hiatus since he has a million things going on at the moment.**

 **New job, job training twice a week, and starting his Master's degree which he will be taking two classes instead of one. So, that means there will be no time to write that story. He doesn't know when he will pick that story back up, and it might be a long time before you see any update on that story. Sorry guys.**

 _ **Anyway, I hope to have more updates here soon on this story and on the other one.**_

 _ **Thanks for reading. Sorry if it's boring, like I said, I'm still trying to get back into it.**_

 _ **P.S. Christian did not cheat on Ana, and he is not the father of Kate's baby.**_


	32. Chapter 31

_**Five Weeks Later**_

 _ **Ana**_

"How are you feeling dear?" Grace asks while rubbing my back soothingly.

"Ugh, I feel like crap," I groan as I flush the toilet.

I am now thirty-two weeks pregnant, and the nausea has hit once again. I don't understand why the morning sickness has all of a sudden came back. I have been feeling great since I started my second trimester, but these last few days have been downright miserable.

"Here, take a sip of water," Grace hands me a cup.

"One second," I rinse my mouth out and brush my teeth before sipping the rest of the water.

"Are you only nauseous or do you have any other symptoms?" Grace asks while she walks me back to bed.

I have been in bed since last night. "Yes, nauseous. I also have diarrhea and burping. It's disgusting," I groan and lay back on my pillow.

"Does it taste a little like acid?" Grace asks while tucking the comforter around me.

I nod and burp once again. I groan as I put my hand over my mouth. _Ugh, this burping is so disgusting._

"It does sound like acid reflux, which is very common in pregnancy," Grace murmurs.

"Is there anything I can take for it?" _Please, let there be._

"You can take tums, or I can get you a prescription for Omeprazole, which helps with heartburn and acid reflux. I will put that in today for you," she smiles softly.

"Thank you, Grace. I appreciate it," I smile at her.

"It's no problem, dear. Try to get some sleep, and I will wake you when I have the prescription," she says while walking towards the door.

I nod, and she turns off the light and closes the door softly. I put my hand on stomach and turn to lay on my side. I sigh and try to drift off to sleep.

* * *

"Ana, honey?" Grace rouses me from sleep.

I open my eyes and see her smile down at me. I rise and stretch my arms over my head. I see that Grace has the prescription in her hand and a bottle of Tums. She sits down next to me on the bed and hands me a few.

"You can take the Omeprazole tomorrow morning before you eat breakfast, but you can take some Tums right now. Hopefully, that makes you feel a little better for the rest of the day," Grace explains.

"Thank you, Grace. I hate throwing up," I groan and chew the Tums.

"It's more than likely due to the reflux. We can try to incline your mattress, that should help the acid coming back up," Grace says while handing me a glass of water.

"Great, thank you," I smile in gratitude.

"Your welcome, honey."

Grace suddenly looks nervous. I frown at her when she fidgets with the end of the Tums cap.

"I got a call earlier today," she says hesitantly.

I raise my eyebrows at her but don't say anything.

"It was Eamon Kavanagh," she hesitates.

I stiffen, then sit up straight. "What did he want? Are the kids okay?"

"Yes, of course, they are. He was calling to say that they found Mia and Ethan."

"They did? Where are they? Are they okay?" I say in a rush.

"Yes, they are fine," she reassures me.

"Well, where were they all this time?" I say in confusion.

"They were in Cleveland," she sighs.

"Cleveland? Why would they be all the way in Ohio?" I frown.

"Eamon said that they hitched a ride from someone and stayed at one of the local shelters."

I shake my head. "Why would they go there? I don't understand why they would leave their children and just leave?" I say frantically.

"Honey, calm down. It's okay," Grace places her hand on my shoulder and squeezes gently.

I take a deep breath and then nod my head.

"Wait, their parents called CPS on them. Are they in trouble?"

"Actually, it was their daughter, Kate who called and not Eamon and Cheryl," Grace shakes her head.

"What? Kate? Are you serious?" I almost shout. _Why the hell would that bitch call CPS on her own brother?_

"I don't know all the specifics, but Kate hates her brother for whatever reason. I don't know, but his parents are trying to make amends. They talked with CPS, and got everything cleared away," she explains.

"I thought that his parents called CPS? Why would they lie about that?" I frown.

"I have no idea why they would lie, honey," she shrugs.

"So, where are they now?" I sigh.

"They are living with them. Since Kate is pregnant, Eamon sent her to live in one of his downtown apartments."

"So, they want to make amends? You believe that?" I say in confusion.

Grace hesitates before she sighs. "I have been seeing the Kavanaghs around the hospital recently. I talked with Cheryl who informed me that Eamon is sick."

"Sick? What do you mean?" I frown.

"He found out that he has cancer. Prostate cancer to be specific," She sighs.

"Woah," I murmured after a few seconds of silence.

"He is starting his treatment soon. I don't know how serious his case is, but they have been looking back at their earlier behavior towards their son and wanted to try to mend their relationship," she nods.

We sit in silence once more; both lost in our own thoughts. I am relieved that they found Mia and Ethan and I am shocked to hear that his father is sick. I'm also disgusted that his own sister would call CPS on him. I mean, what did he ever do to her for her to do something like that? Why would his parents lie in the first place? Suddenly, I feel sorry for her child who must grow up with her as an influence.

My mind immediately goes back to the dinner a few weeks ago when Elliot was acting strangely after he found out that Kate is pregnant. _What was all that about?_

My eyes widen when a terrifying thought hits me. _Oh, my God._

 _Did Elliot get Kate pregnant?_ His reaction to her pregnancy was bizarre. I mean why else would he look horrified at the thought of her pregnant?

Could he really cheat on Addison? _No, he wouldn't._ Elliot is not like that, we know him. Something else is going on because I know that Elliot would never betray someone who he cares about.

Especially not someone like that bitch, Kate. Yes, something else is going on.

* * *

"Hey, baby," Christian says while walking into our room.

I am leaning against the headboard of our bed, reading a book.

"Hey. How was your day?" I ask while placing the bookmark on the page I was reading.

"It was good. Are you feeling any better?" He frowns while taking off his work boots.

"Yes, definitely better than I was this morning. Grace said it was more than likely acid reflux, so she got me a prescription. I can start taking it in the morning," I explain.

"That's good. I was worried about you," he sighs in relief.

"I'm okay. Eight weeks to go," I smile as I rub my protruding belly.

"I can't wait until the little guy is here. Feels like you have been pregnant forever," he teases.

"Don't I know it," I roll my eyes.

Christian laughs as he undresses out of his work clothes and into some jeans and a plain T-shirt.

"I have something I want to talk to you about."

I pat the spot right next to me. He frowns and comes over and sits down beside me. He takes my hand and runs his thumb over my knuckles. I take a deep breath and take a minute to get my thoughts together.

"Do you remember when we had that dinner a few weeks ago? When Jack came over?" I say after a few minutes of silence.

Christian frowns in confusion. "Yeah, what about it?"

"Remember when Addison told Elliot that Kate was at the store, and she was pregnant?" I murmur.

"Vaguely," he shakes his head after a few seconds.

"Elliot's reaction to it. Didn't you find it strange?" I ask.

Christian frowns deeply before his eyes widen. "Are you saying that Elliot is the father of Kate's baby?" He says in horror.

"No! I know Elliot wouldn't cheat on Addison. I just found it weird that he would act like that," I say quickly.

"There has to be an explanation, but I can guarantee that he wouldn't cheat on her, especially with that bitch," he shrugs his shoulders.

"I know. What else could it be though?" I bite my nails.

Christian scowls and takes my hand away from my mouth. He always hates it when I bite my nails.

"No clue, but I will talk with him and well sort it out. Don't worry about it, baby."

I nod and sit up again when I realize I didn't tell him about Mia and Ethan.

"Grace told me that Ethan and Mia were found," I blurt out.

"You're kidding? Where are they?" Christian freezes.

I tell him what Grace informed me about Eamon and about how he was diagnosed with cancer, and how we wanted to make amends.

"Do you think they are sincere?" I ask.

"Who knows. They were fucking assholes to Mia and Ethan and to us, but on the other hand it makes sense if he is sick and wants to have a relationship with his son," he sighs.

"Kate is also an even bigger bitch than I thought," Christian scowls.

"Tell me about it," I agree.

"Come. I want to show you something," Christian beams at me and gets up off the bed.

"What is it?" I smile and get up.

"You'll see. Come," He smiles back and takes my hand and leads me out of the room.

He stops at the room next to ours, which is our son's nursery. I beam up at him.

"Did they finish it?" I giggle.

"This morning," he nods and opens the door.

I walk inside and gasp at how beautiful it all came together. The walls are a fresh gray color, with various animal artwork that are displayed around the room. The crib is placed in the middle of the room, which is also a warm gray color. For the crib bedding, we went with dark gray crib sheets and a blue and white stripped crib bumper. The other nursery furniture matches the color of the crib.

Our son's nursery is beautiful, and exactly what we wanted.

"It's perfect," I whisper as Christian kisses my temple softly.

"It sure is," Christian agrees.

* * *

 _ **Two Weeks Later**_

"Well, everything looks good, Ana. Right on schedule," the doctor smiles at me.

"That's great," I sigh in relief.

I am thirty-four weeks today, and I just finished my routine appointment.

"How is the reflux? Is that medication helping any?" the doctor asks.

"Yes, it is. No more throwing up," I nod. _Thank Heavens!_

"Okay, we will see you two weeks from now. After that appointment, we will see you every week until you deliver," he explains.

"Okay," I nod and step down off the table.

"Just go ahead and make your next appointment," he says and gives me a paper to hand to the receptionist.

I thank him and head out of the room and make my next appointment. I look around the lobby and smile at my surroundings.

Grace referred me to another OBGYN who is closer to their house, so we wouldn't have to drive all the way to the clinic in the city, which I'm grateful.

The receptionist gives me an appointment reminder card, and I thank her before I walk out of the office. I smile when I see my new car parked on the sidewalk. Carrick and Grace gifted it to me for an early birthday present, even though my birthday isn't until September, I am incredibly thankful.

I stand there and admire the car; a silver Audi A8. I smile, and when I am about to open the driver's side door, I hear my name being called behind me.

I turn around and freeze when I see Mia walking towards me with Lola on her hip. My mouth drops open when I see her all dressed up. She is wearing a black lace-up top, ripped skinny jeans, and brown lace up sandals. Her brown hair is down in soft waves, and her makeup is light. She is holding Lola who is dressed in a cute purple and white polka dot romper with brown sandals.

They both look happy and healthy.

"Hey," she says hesitantly.

I shake my head and then stare at her emotionless. I didn't think I would feel this angry when I would see her again, but I do. I felt angry and betrayed of what they did to their kids. I feel angry that they left them without an explanation.

She looks down when I see a look of shame pass through her face.

"I like your dress," she murmurs.

I sigh and look down at my outfit. It's one of my new maxi dresses. It's white on top and sage green on the bottom. I look up and get pissed seeing that this is the first thing she says to me after what she did.

"That's all you have to say to me after what you did?" I hiss.

She cringes and then looks at me with regret. "I'm sorry, Ana. We didn't know what else to do. We thought they would be safe with you," she pleads.

I shake my head, and I can't help but scoff. "Mia, I'm sorry for everything that happened, but you can't expect me to be happy. You left your kids! Abandoned them and I can't just forget that!" I shout but immediately regret it when Lola jumps in her arms.

She sniffs and nods her head. "I know, and I didn't expect you to forgive me right away. I just wanted to say thank you for taking care of my kids. I know what we did was wrong. I know that now, but we did what we thought was best at the time. I…I just wanted to say thank you."

I sigh and push my purse up my shoulder. "Mia, I am glad you are here and safe. I'm glad everything seemed to work out for you guys."

She smiles, but her face falls when I continue.

"I'm sorry. Maybe in the future, but I can't right now," I murmur and look down at my keys that I am holding in my hand.

She nods and wipes a tear from her eye. "Okay. It was good to see you. Take care," she says hesitantly.

"You too," I give her a small smile.

She gives me one back as I wave goodbye to Lola. She gives me her beautiful baby smile as Mia turns around and walks off.

I sigh and watch her walk away down the street and out of view.

I really want to forgive them. Maybe in time we can all get together and be friends again, but right now, I think it's best to go our separate ways.

I reluctantly turn around and get in the car and drive back home.

* * *

 _ **AN: Just wanted to let you all know even though I am officially back to writing, the updates will more than likely be slow going. It's been challenging trying to write with a fussy baby.**_

 ** _Pinterest is updated. Thank you all for hanging in there with me. See you all next time._**


	33. Chapter 32

_**AN: This chapter took a different direction that I planned, but It's something that many readers have asked about in the past. ;)**_

* * *

 _ **Ana**_

"I'm excited about tonight!" I stop applying my lipstick and turn around and smile over at Christian.

"Me too, baby. It will be nice to get out of the house," he smiles before tucking his shirt into his suit pants.

I agree and turn back towards the mirror and swipe the last coat of pale pink lipstick to my lips.

It has been two weeks since my run-in with Mia. When I came home that afternoon, I told Christian what happened. He wasn't too pleased to hear about Mia's explanation or _lack of an explanation_ he said.

" _What kind of lame excuse was that?" He hissed while pacing through our bedroom._

" _I don't know. I don't know what to think. I'm still so angry at them," I murmur._

" _Well, you have every right to be pissed at them! They left their kids for Christ sake!" he growled._

I sigh and shake my head. I don't want to think about it. I am still hurt about them abandoning the kids, but I'm really starting to miss Mia's friendship. I want to move on from the situation, but it's still so fresh.

Time. It will just take time.

I sigh again and put the situation in the back of my mind.

Today is going to be fun. It is Priscilla's birthday today, and Greyson is throwing her a birthday party that is going to be held in their backyard. He originally wanted it to be a surprise party, but it turns out Greyson cannot keep secrets from his girlfriend. She quickly found out a few days after he started planning the party due to accidentally leaving the guest list on the kitchen table.

I still chuckle at the phone conversation that I had with her a week ago. Priscilla couldn't stop laughing at how pissed off Greyson was on how he stupidly forgot to take the guest list with him to the office that day. She told me that he couldn't stop pouting the rest of the night.

They are having an outdoor party, and their list of guests is in the range of 100-150 people including some of Greyson's business partners.

Since it's a themed garden party, I decided on a mint floral chiffon maternity dress with tan wedges. My hair is curled and pinned off to the side, and my makeup is light. I finish placing the diamond studs in my ears that Greyson and Priscilla purchased for me. He surprised me with the beautiful earrings at my surprise baby shower a week ago.

It was an ordinary Friday. Christian came home from work and told me that we were going out for an early dinner. After we both got dressed, he drove about twenty minutes before stopping at a considerable mansion instead of a restaurant. I look over at him confused because I thought that we were going to dinner. It turned out to be a huge surprise baby shower for us. The house he took me too ended up being Grace's parents' house. I previously met them a month ago when they came by to meet their grandson for the first time.

His grandparents went all out for my baby shower. It was a blue and gray elephant themed shower, complete with games, an extensive buffet and lots of gifts. We received diapers, wipes, bottles, pacifiers, onesies, bibs, clothes, swaddle blankets, diaper bag, carriers, baby swing, bouncer, toys, and numerous gift sets. We have everything we could ever need for this little one and Christian, and I are internally grateful for everyone's generosity.

All the men left for a while, and they returned when it was time to open all the gifts. After all the gifts were opened, Greyson and Priscilla also wanted me to have something for myself. The earrings were beautiful, and I couldn't stop thanking them afterward.

The biggest surprise of the shower was when Jack showed up with all the men. He even got us a few gifts for the baby, which was also very surprising. The entire time Christian was speechless with his behavior since he always showed hostility towards us in the past. It's like he did a complete 180 overnight.

"Are you ready?"

Christian breaks me out of my thoughts. He is dressed in a light blue button-up with black slacks and dress shoes. He looks yummy as always.

"Yes," I smile as I pick up my clutch and follow him out of the door.

* * *

"Wow. Every time I come here, this house still blows me away," I say in awe.

The pristine house is two-story that has black shutters and full windows. The home has five bedrooms and four bathrooms. I was surprised on how big the house is for just the two of them, but Priscilla said that they wanted a big house so when people came to visit they would have enough room for them to stay the night, especially on big occasions such as Thanksgiving and Christmas.

"I know. Hopefully, someday I can give you something like this," he says while parking the car.

"No. It's too big. I would be happy with something smaller," I smile over at him.

He smiles and slowly runs his index finger down my cheekbone. "I want to give you everything," he murmurs.

"I don't want everything. All I need is you," I whisper as I stare into his gray eyes.

"You know we have a generous amount of savings now. When do you want to start looking for places?" he asks suddenly.

"For houses?" I frown.

"Yes, for houses. We have enough to put down for a deposit," he nods.

"Yeah, but we only just moved in with your parents. We completed a nursery and were just now getting back on our feet. I don't think it's the right time. How about next year?" I offer.

He sighs and runs his hand through his hair. "Your right. Maybe it's too soon."

I smile and place my hand in his. "I do want our own home, but we should wait until the baby is a little older and we know for sure we would be able to afford to live on our own."

"Right. I'm getting ahead of myself," Christian sighs.

"It's okay. I'm excited that we are on our way to owning something. It's just going to take a little bit more time," I smile and lean over and kiss his cheek.

"What was that?"

"A kiss," I frown.

He smiles and shakes his head and then points to his lips.

I giggle and kiss his lips. He starts to deepen the kiss, but we both jump up in surprise when there is a sudden knock on his side of the window.

"Are you guys getting out anytime soon?" Elliot yells.

I start to laugh when I see him making faces while his nose is smashed against the window.

"Get your ugly mug off my window you dick," Christian chuckles while hitting the glass with his fist.

Elliot sticks his tongue out and steps back so Christian can open the door.

"Ana, you're here!" Addison shrieks and practically runs over and hugs me.

I giggle and hug her back. "You look amazing!"

Addison is wearing a long white and rose pattern maxi dress. Her hair is down in loose curls.

"Thank you! I love your dress. Hi, baby," she smiles as she rubs my stomach.

"Not too long now," I sigh.

"How far along are you again?" she asks.

"Thirty-six weeks. Four more weeks to go," I say in relief.

"I can't wait until he is here," she says before walking into Elliot's arms.

"And mine," we suddenly hear a sickly-sweet voice behind us.

I turn around and almost roll my eyes at Kate and what she is wearing. It's a white dress that shows off her cleavage and upper thigh. It's so tight that I can see her barely-there baby bump that is starting to form. Her strawberry blond hair is down in waves, and she has way too much makeup on.

Christian scowls at her while I try not to do the same.

"Yes, your baby too, Kate," Addison gives her an annoyed smile before turning back to her boyfriend.

"Hello, Elliot," she bites her lip while rubbing his arm.

Elliot grimaces and then gives her a tight smile while trying to move away from her. "Hey," is all he says before turning his back to her and brings Addison to his chest. She smiles up at him, and Elliot does the same before kissing her nose.

Kate scoffs and storms away and walks back into the house. I huff out a laugh, and Addison does the same.

"Why the hell are you still friends with her again?" Christian rolls his eyes and turns towards Addison.

"I don't know. I haven't talked to her since I found out what she did to Ethan and Mia. Greyson invited her father, and I guess she wanted to come as well. Her parents couldn't come though," she rolls her eyes.

"Come on you guys. Let's go find the birthday girl," Addison shrieks and grabs my hand and leads me into the house.

The interior of the house is fantastic. It has a vast open floor plan with dark hardwood floors, high ceilings, and a beautiful chandelier that hangs above the white couches in the living room. There is also a big white furry rug that dominates the living room floor.

I smile when I spot Greyson and Priscilla walking towards all of us. Priscilla looks amazing as always. She is wearing a long-sleeved sheer black dress that emphasizes her curves perfectly. What I love about her outfit is the elegant flower pattern that is sown throughout the dress. Her hair is straightened, and her height almost matches her boyfriends in her black high heels.

Grayson opted for a black button-up shirt that is rolled up to his elbows, jeans and oxford shoes. He also grew out his hair a little since the last time I saw him. He winks at me before kissing my cheek.

"Good to see you again, sis," he says in his Australian accent.

"You too," I say before kissing him on the cheek.

He turns towards Christian, and they shake hands. Priscilla gives me one of her bear hugs and then rubs my bump.

"I'm so glad you guys could make it. I'm sure you're getting pretty tired?" she smiles as she continues to rub my bump.

"I am. Four more weeks," I groan and then giggle.

"Ana, Christian," Elena suddenly appears from the kitchen.

"How are you dear?" She asks before hugging me.

"I'm great. It's nice to see you again, Mr. Lincoln," I shake hands with Priscilla's dad who I just met a few weeks back.

"Likewise. Call me, Richard," he winks at me before shaking hands with Christian.

We all stand in the living room and talk about our week. Priscilla and I talk baby, while Addison and Elliot talk to Greyson and Elliot. Elena pulls me into a conversation about what my plans are for our delivery. To be honest, I haven't even thought about a birth plan yet. I am for sure not wanting a natural birth, so I tell her that I am more than likely wanting to get an epidural instead of going natural.

"I had a water birth with Priscilla. Let me tell you, I for sure regret going that route. The pain was unbearable for what I could remember. I'm sure getting an epidural would be better," Elena explains.

"Yeah, I need to talk to my doctor about our options. I'm not looking forward to labor since this is my first time, I don't know what to expect," I laugh nervously.

"Don't worry dear. Labor is hard, but it will be worth it when you hold your baby for the first time," Elena smiles reassuringly.

I smile and rub my stomach. _Yes, it will._

"Has anyone seen Carrick?" Christian asks a little while later.

"Oh! We have been so caught up talking, we forgot about everyone else outside. Let's go outside and mingle," Priscilla gasps and drags Grayson to the backyard.

Grayson chuckles and gestures to all of us to come outside. Christian takes my hand and leads me to the large backyard where the party is being held.

There is a vast white tent in the middle of the yard. There are comfortable looking white couches and ottomans spread throughout the tent so that guests are able to sit down and mingle with each other. There are also several round tables that are placed in front of the couches.

The tables have crisp white tablecloths, white placemats, silverware and fresh flowers that are in beautiful glass vases for the centerpieces along with candles on the side. The path to the tent is lined with decorative lanterns that hang from the trees. Off to the side of the tent, there is a long table that lines a spread of various finger foods and refreshments. Numerous servers are standing behind the table, ready to help the guests in getting their food and drinks.

Christian leads me to the table, and I smile up at the young man who is helping pass out the refreshments.

"What would you like Miss?" he asks politely.

I look down and see that there is champagne, iced tea, iced water, lemonade, and what seems to be diverse kinds of cocktails.

"I will have a lemonade. Thank you," I smile.

He nods and pours me a glass and hands it to me. Christian asks for a glass of water. After we have our drinks, we head down the line and see several types of delicious finger foods to choose. There are caprese skewers, crostini, peach & goat cheese that are drizzled with honey & topped with basil, a bruschetta bar, mini croissant sandwiches and herbed chicken salad tea sandwiches.

There is also a dessert spread of cut watermelon skewers, strawberry shortcakes, strawberry brownie kabobs, caramel apple dip, and cranberry-walnut pinwheels.

My mouth starts to water when I see all the yummy food in front of me. I eagerly ask for a little bit of everything. Christian chuckles when he sees my plate full of food.

"What? The baby is hungry," I scowl as I take the plate from the young women who have finished adding a watermelon skewer to my dish.

Christian puts his hands up and laughs. I smirk and follow him to one of the tables. We set our plates and drinks down, and he helps me into my chair before he sits down.

"This looks so good," I groan when I taste one of the mini croissant sandwiches.

"Don't do that," Christian scowls and discreetly adjusts himself under the table.

"I can't help it," I giggle and groan again after I finish the sandwich.

Christian takes a deep breath and glares at me before starting on his food. He mumbles under his breath that sound like he is saying; _sexy minx._ I laugh again and look around the tent. Everyone is either at the tables eating or sitting with their drinks on the couches.

I notice Jack off into the distance, talking with a few men in similar outfits of dress pants and dress shirts. He spots me and raises his glass and gives me a small smile. I give him one back and pick up another sandwich.

I spot Grace and Carrick walking towards us with their plate of food. They look elegant as always. Grace is wearing a floral print crepe dress with matches wedges, and her hair is in her usual chignon. Carrick is dressed in a light blue button-up shirt, cream-colored slacks and oxford shoes.

"Hi, Grace!" I smile as they sit down at the table in front of us.

"Hi! Are you guys enjoying yourself so far?" Grace smiles before sipping her champagne.

"We are so far," I nod and take a sip of my lemonade.

Addison and Elliot walk over and sit down a little while later. We all talk, laugh and eat our food for the next thirty minutes. I look over at Christian and smile as he talks with his father. Their relationship has drastically improved since we moved in with them. I smile and place my hand into his when he laughs at something Carrick said. He turns towards me and winks before squeezing my hand gently.

I sit there and sigh contently. I never thought this would be my life. When we were living in the shelter and out on the streets, I never thought that our life would turn out this way.

I never thought we would be a part of such a wonderful family like the Greys.

I never thought that we would have a home filled with love and happiness.

It's like living in a dream. A dream that I don't want to wake up from.

It's as if Christian is reading my thoughts, he pulls me towards him and kisses my head softly. I kiss his cheek and cuddle up beside him and continue to listen to the conversation around me.

* * *

A few hours later, all the guests are sitting around the couches talking and laughing with each other. Priscilla opened all her gifts and cut her birthday cake an hour ago, so everyone is now relaxing inside of the tent.

It is getting dark now, and it's almost time for sunset. I look out towards the sky and see a mix of red and orange. I can just spot the water from a distance, and the sight is breathtaking. I smile when I feel Christian's arms wrap around my waist from behind.

He whispers _I love you_ in my ear as we gently sway from side to side.

"I love you too. So much," I whisper and close my eyes.

I hear ruffling behind me, but before I can turn my head towards the sound, Christian distracts me by kissing my neck.

Christian suddenly whispers in my ear, "I've known you my whole life. Loved you since I was little. You know everything about me. The good and the bad. You know all my faults. My weaknesses and all my strengths."

I smile and lean my cheek into his cheek, so they are touching.

He continues to whisper in my ear softly. "You're my best friend. You're the only women I want to wake up to every morning. The only women I want. Forever."

My lip trembles at his words. I want to kiss him and tell him that he is also all those things to me, but before I can take his arms off from around my waist, so I can turn around, his arms fall to his side, and he steps back.

I turn around and gasp when I see him get down on one knee. Tears glisten in his eyes when he looks up at me. I choke back a sob when I see him take out a ring box from his pocket. He smiles and opens the box to reveal the most perfect ring. It has a simple silver band with a round diamond in the center. It's perfect.

"Will you marry me?"

"Yes!" I immediately say as I carefully fall to my knees and kiss him.

He kisses me as tears run down my face. He stops and leans back but since I'm so emotional, I lean my head into his chest and continue to sob.

"Hey, come here," he whispers into my hair.

I gasp and lean my head back. He takes out the ring from the box and places it on my trembling finger. Tears fall faster down my face as I stare down at my ring.

"It's perfect. Oh, Christian," I laugh and cry simultaneously.

"I love you, baby," he smiles and kisses my forehead.

"I love you too."

I laugh as the tent opens back up and we see everyone clapping and cheering. Priscilla and Addison are jumping up and down in joy as Grace is sobbing in Carrick's chest while he beams over at us. Greyson and Elliot are smiling and clapping along with everyone else. I see that bitch, Kate off to the side rolling her eyes and stares at her nails looking bored.

Christian raises my hand and yells, "She said yes!"

Everyone claps harder making me blush and smile wider. Christian smiles back at me before leaning down and places his forehead on mine and stares at me with love.

 _I'm getting married!_

* * *

 ** _AN: Pinterest is update with tons of pictures from this chapter._**

 ** _Thanks for reading. See you next time._**


	34. Chapter 33

_**Ana**_

"Have you found him yet?" I nervously bite my thumbnail as I stare at Christian who is pacing at the end of our bed.

"No. The manager at the shelter hasn't seen him for a week and a half," he sighs as he runs a hand down his face.

"I hope he is okay. He needs to get off the street."

"I don't know where to look. Plus, I'm not very comfortable going out there when you're so close to your due date," he sighs and comes to sit down beside me.

"We have eight more days, though. How about we go out today?" I rub my stomach.

"Anastasia, I am not going out there right now, and even if I did, there is no way in _hell_ I am taking you with me," he snaps.

I groan and nod my head. "I'm sorry. Just worried about him."

Christian's eyes soften and then places his hand on my stomach. "Me too, baby. We will find him soon. Are you tired?"

I groan. "A little. Ugh, I am so uncomfortable. I am over being pregnant."

"I know baby, but you're almost there."

He kisses my hair as I lean back on my hands and breathe through the Braxton Hicks contractions. I've been having them often the last few days.

Tomorrow I will be thirty-nine weeks pregnant. At my last doctor's appointment, I wasn't dilated at all yet, but I could be going into active labor at any time this week. I'm crossing my fingers that this baby gets delivered soon.

I let out a smile when Christian picks up my hand and kisses my wedding and engagement rings.

"Well?" Christian smirks.

"You know that always puts a smile on my face," I giggle.

"Good," he chuckles

Christian and I got married last week in a small, intimate ceremony in the backyard of Grace and Carrick's house. We considered getting married after the baby was born, but I didn't want to wait any longer to call Christian by husband, which he wholeheartedly agreed.

Our wedding was beautiful. Our entire family and a few members of the shelter were in attendance. Addison was a bridesmaid, and Priscilla was my maid of honor. Elliot was Christian's best man, and Grayson was a groomsman. The color of Addison and Priscilla's dresses matched Grayson and Elliot's tie, which were a light green.

My wedding dress was a short white gown that fell to my knees. It had a V shaped neckline and delicate lace detailing on the shoulders. The back of the dress came with a white satin sash that was held under my bust and tied at the back. Christian looked dashing in his black tux and bow-tie.

After the ceremony, the reception was held in a white tent by the water. The night was full of laughter, food and dancing. Our reception ended with a surprise trip by Grace and Carrick for our honeymoon. Since I am in my last trimester, I couldn't fly anywhere, so they gave us an all paid weekend trip to Ann Arbor.

After tears and hugs from everybody at the wedding, Christian drove us to our honeymoon destination. After about an hour, we arrived at a beautiful bed and breakfast in Downtown. Our wedding night was magical, and the rest of the weekend was fun and relaxing, and of course full of passionate lovemaking. Our honeymoon was perfect, and it was just what we needed before our bundle of joy makes his appearance.

After our last destination in Ann Arbor, which was carefully walking along the Huron River hand in hand, we packed up and drove back home.

"What are you thinking about?" Christian brings me out of my daydream.

"Just our wedding and our honeymoon weekend."

He smirks and then leans over and kisses me passionately. I moan against his lips when he gently eases me down on the bed.

* * *

I groan as I open my eyes. It's still dark outside, and Christian is still sleeping soundly next to me. I look over towards the windows and see a hint of dawn in the distance.

I bite my lip as another contraction hits me. I rub my stomach and try to breathe through the tightening of my stomach. All night they have come and gone, but they haven't been that strong.

I carefully get out of bed and waddle to the restroom for the millionth time. All night I have had to get up and go to the bathroom. It's irritating, and I am exhausted.

After relieving my bladder, I wash my hands and quietly walk out of our bedroom. I walk downstairs and head into the kitchen to make me a cup of tea.

After I am done making my tea, I sit down at the comfy breakfast nook and marvel at the silence of the house. I look out of the window and stare at the water in contentment, but it is short-lived when another contraction suddenly hits.

A very strong contraction.

I gasp and nearly drop my teacup onto the table. I breathe through the contraction, and when it ends, I sit back and groan while I rub my belly.

"Oh. Your coming, aren't you?" I say out loud in a panic while I try to get up from the table.

"Need to get Christian," I say to myself while slowly walking towards the stairs.

Contractions hit once more, causing me to stop and bend over in pain. "Ow," I squeak and moan through it.

I pant when the contraction is over. I gasp and hold my stomach while slowly standing up straight. I stand there for a few minutes, trying to calm down, but when I walk the first step up the stairs, another one hits.

I sit down on the stairs for the next twenty minutes trying to find the energy to yell out for Christian. The contractions are sometimes three minutes apart, and some are five minutes apart, and they are getting stronger and stronger.

When the last one ends, I somehow find the strength to yell out for my husband.

"CHRISTIAN!"

After a few beats, I hear him run down the stairs towards me.

"Jesus, Ana! Are you okay?" he says in a panic.

"No! I'm having contractions! I think we need to get to the hospital," I pant.

"Okay. Okay. Okay. Let's go."

He stands me up, and we walk down the last step. Christian deposits me on the couch while he runs up the stairs to get his shoes and my hospital bag.

"Are you okay, Ana?" Grace suddenly barrels towards me, along with Carrick right behind her.

"No. The baby is coming," I gasp when another one hits.

 _Oh, my God, this hurts!_

"Has your water broken, honey? Are you bleeding at all?" Grace calmly asks.

"No," I groan as another start.

Grace coaches me through the contraction while we wait for Christian. He practically flies down the stairs when he sees me in pain.

He reaches me, and we all walk towards the front door. It takes longer to get there due to the contractions, but we finally get all loaded up after fifteen minutes.

The ride to the hospital was unbearable! It's early morning, so there is a ton of traffic, and an accident on the highway towards the hospital.

I yelled at Carrick to go faster because the pain was so bad, I felt like I could have the baby at any moment. He starts to freak out and starts driving on the shoulder with the hazard lights on.

The hospital was in view when I suddenly felt lightheaded. My head felt fuzzy and felt like my whole body was buzzing. I started to panic, but after the look of fear on Christian's face, I didn't say anything. I know it was because I wasn't breathing as I needed to while having a contraction. I try not to hold my breath when I am in the middle of one, but it was extremely hard.

"Carrick, please, hurry," I cried out as another one hit.

"Shh, baby. Breathe, baby, breathe," Christian whispered in my ear.

Finally, we arrived at the hospital. Grace got out of the car and went inside to get a nurse. When they came out of the front doors, Christian helped me out of the car and into the wheelchair. The nurse wheeled me into the hospital while Christian kept a hold of my hand.

When we arrived at Triage, the nurse asks me if I am bleeding. I tell her no, and she tells me to go into the bathroom and give them a urine sample and to put on a gown. Christian hurries to the front desk and checks us in while Grace helps me with the gown.

Grace steps outside to give me some privacy while I go to the bathroom. I go to sit down on the toilet to provide them the sample and discover that I am in fact bleeding.

I am just about to yank on the emergency string that is beside the toilet paper roll, but before I can, another contraction hits. I gasp and start screeching out in pain. A nurse comes walking into the bathroom after I finally yank on the string. I tell her that I am bleeding and that I need to lay down.

She lays me down on one of the beds as Christian runs over to us and grabs my hand.

"Okay, honey, I am just going to check to see how far you have dilated," the nurse says as she sits down at the foot of the bed.

"Please, I need something for the pain," I cry as she checks me over.

"I know honey; we will get you something. Just hang on," she explains.

Another nurse walks in and starts getting things ready for my IV line.

"Okay, you are at six centimeters with a bulging bag. We need to get her upstairs. Did you call the doctor?" she says at the nurse who is disconnecting the wires from the wall.

"Yes, she is on her way," she nods.

The two nurses wheel the bed towards the elevator. When we get up to the delivery floor and into my room, the nurses pile in and start working around the room. Grace and Christian each hold onto my hand. A nurse comes up and puts my IV line into the inside of my elbow while another one hits.

"Oh, my, God," I scream as I ride out the most powerful contraction yet.

"I'm here, baby," Christian says into my ear.

"Where is the doctor?" I hear one of the nurses say.

"She is running down the hallway, now."

Before the nurse can check me for dilation, another contraction hits and suddenly, I feel a huge gush and see that my water has finally broken.

"Okay, the water is clear," I hear the nurse say.

I pant and look up at Christian. He looks scared, and I try to smile at him but am not successful. I grip the bed rails hard with my hand as another one hits and I suddenly I feel tons of pressure and have the urge to push.

"I need to push!" I yell out.

One of the nurses comes forward and tells me not to push just yet since the doctor isn't here yet.

"Can I have something for the pain?" I ask as I ride out another one.

"I'm sorry honey, but your past an epidural," she says calmly.

I look at Christian in panic and start to freak out. _I can't do this!_

"It's okay, baby. It's okay," he says soothingly into my ear.

Grace wipes my forehead gently with a warm washcloth.

Doctor Greene finally comes in and gets ready. When she has her scrubs on, she comes over and checks me. The nurses help me place my feet into the stirrups as we get ready to push. I try not to push, but the pressure is getting agonizing.

"Okay, you are at ten centimeters. It's time to push," she says as she looks up at me.

My eyes glisten, and then I nod and wait until another contraction hits before I start to push. When it does, the pressure is unbearable, and I push a few times and then after the fourth push, and a lot of screaming, we hear a loud cry.

"It's a boy!" Doctor Greene says as she places him on my chest.

Tears leak out of my eyes as I get a good look at my son who is already asleep on my chest.

Christian smiles and kisses me softly on the cheek. I look up at him, and his eyes are full of tears as he looks down at our son. I smile and caress his back and kiss his head softly. Grace is weeping next to me. She kisses my forehead and tells us that she is going to find Carrick and that she will be right back.

After she leaves, Christian cuts the cord, and after another kiss on his head, I hand him over to a nurse, so that he can get cleaned and wrapped up.

After everything is delivered, Doctor Greene congratulates us before she leaves the room. The nurses give me a shot of morphine for the pain, which helps tremendously.

I sigh and lay back and suddenly chuckle at my unexpected natural birth.

"Are you okay?" Christian asks while I stare at the nurses who are busy checking over our son.

"Yes, just thinking about how happy I am," I smile.

"Me too. Thank you, Ana," he whispers as he stares into my eyes.

"I love you."

"I love you more," he whispers.

"Here is your son, Mrs. Grey," the nurse smiles at us as she hands me our son who is all swaddled in a white blanket.

My lip starts to tremble when I finally have my baby boy in my arms. He is the most beautiful baby. He has brown hair with flecks of copper, and bright, innocent gray eyes that lazily stare up at me.

I cry while staring down at him. Christian leans over and softly kisses his forehead.

"My baby boy," he whispers while stroking his cheek.

"Yes, our perfect baby boy."

* * *

 _ **AN: Sorry for the delay in updates. Unfortunately I wont be able to update very often due to starting my master program. Just have a lot of things that are going on in real life (moving, babies, etc), so I really do not have time to write but I will finish my stories.**_

 _ **So, Ana's labor was similar to my last birth, which was very scary and a extremely fast delivery. I was definitely scared I was going to have my son in my car on the way to the hospital. The hubs did end up driving on the shoulder since there were tons of traffic, but we finally got there and after 20 minutes from arriving, baby Liam was born naturally (which definitely wasn't by choice, lol).**_

 _ **Anyway, this story is starting to wrap up soon. The next chapters will be about the drama of Elliot, Kate and of course, Jack.**_

 _ **Pinterest will be updated shortly with some pics of the wedding.**_

 ** _Please bear with me with updates. I will try my best to get them out soon, but no promises. :)_**


	35. Chapter 34

_**Ana**_

 _ **Two Months Later**_

Christian pants in exhaustion as he rolls off me and lays on his back beside me on the bed. I lay there thoroughly sated and happy.

It has been two months since I delivered baby Carson and it sure has been quite an adventure so far.

He has been the perfect baby. He is very content and only cries when he is either hungry or tired. For the last few days, he has been sleeping through the night which I am thankful for because Christian and I are able to spend more time with each other in and out of the bedroom.

The first week after the birth, Grace wanted to have a professional come and take newborn pictures of the baby. A few days later, we had a professional photographer come by the house and take some shots of Carson in different poses and outfits. We also wanted some shots of all of us together, so the photographer shot one of me holding Carson, and one of Christian kissing him. The photos turned out amazing, and they are proudly displayed all over the house.

"What are you thinking about?" Christian whispers in my ear.

"Just thinking how these last few months have been perfect," I whisper back I cuddle into Christian's side.

"I would say too perfect," Christian snorts.

I frown and look up at him. "What do you mean?"

"I don't know. Just have a feeling that something is going to happen," he sighs.

"Something is going to happen?" I frown.

"I don't know, Ana. Jack just did a one-eighty these last few months, Taylor is still MIA, and I know something is going on with Elliot and that bitch, Kate," he grunts.

I groan and then roll my eyes at the last one. "Do you think he really slept with her?"

"Fuck no! He would never cheat on Addison. I don't know what it is, but something happened with those two, and I don't like it," he hisses.

I sigh and nod my head that is laying on his chest. Elliot has been acting strange these last few months, and for some reason, Kate is always showing up here all the time, especially when Elliot is here.

He won't look her straight in the eye, and when he does manage to look her way, his eyes are always on her baby bump.

Kate is now 26 weeks pregnant, and she did end up finding out that the baby is a girl. The other odd reason why she is over here all the time is that she always is asking Grace, her opinion on all things baby.

"Why don't you try talking to Elliot? Maybe he will tell you what is going on," I suggest while running my hand down his arm.

"I doubt it," he sighs.

I kiss his chest snuggle up close to him. We lie there in silence for a few minutes, and before I know it, I am fast asleep.

* * *

I startle awake when I hear yelling coming from the hallway.

"What the fuck is all that noise? The baby is sleeping," Christian snaps and throws the covers off us and stomps to the door.

I yawn and try to rub the sleep from my eyes while walking behind him.

Christian opens the door, and I frown when I see Addison and Elliot yelling at each other in front of her bedroom door. They both look like they have just come back from a party or something. She is wearing black skinny leather pants, black heels, and a loose light brown shirt. Her face is red with anger as Elliot pleads with her to listen to him.

"I don't care, Elliot! How could you!" she yells.

"It's not what you think, baby. I didn't sleep with her!" Elliot yells back.

"Shut the fuck up you two! Our baby is sleeping!" Christian yells as he walks towards them.

"Christian, shh," I hiss at him while looking towards Carson's bedroom.

"What is going on?" Carrick snaps as he comes up the stairs while Grace is right behind him. They are both wearing their plaid pajamas.

"This asshole cheated on me!" Addison snaps.

"I didn't cheat on you! Kate is delusional! Nothing happened, I swear!" Elliot loudly pleads.

"Do you think I believe you! You both went to the same damn party! You were acting weird the whole next day. Why else would you act like that if you didn't fuck her!" Addison gets in his face.

I worriedly look towards Carson's door and try to hear any signs that he is awake, but I don't hear anything. I am surprised he hasn't woken up yet from all the yelling.

"Okay, you both calm down, and both of you come downstairs. I don't want you to wake my grandson," Grace throws her hands in the air.

Elliot looks down at the floor, and his shoulders slump forward. Addison huffs and goes downstairs. Christian shakes his head and walks back into our bedroom to put a shirt on. I follow him and go and get my robe to put on.

When we are in the hallway, Christian goes downstairs while I check on the baby. I tiptoe to his crib and see that he is still fast asleep. I sigh in relief and kiss his little forehead and quietly walk out of the room.

On my way to the living room, I check the time, and it is a little after 2 o'clock in the morning. I rub my face and walk into the living room and see everyone sitting on the various chairs and couches.

"Is he still sleeping, honey?" Grace asks worriedly.

"Yes, thankfully," I sigh and sit next to Christian.

Grace smiles and then gives Addison and Elliot a dirty look causing them to both look down guiltily.

"Alright, you two. What on earth made you think that it was okay to yell in the middle of the hallway when you knew the baby was sleeping a few doors down?" Carrick snaps at them.

Addison's expression turns angry again. "Well, I just found out that my boyfriend cheated on me with Kate and got her pregnant!"

Elliot turns towards her and pleads, "I didn't sleep with her! I swear! She is lying!"

Addison shakes in anger, but before she can protest, Carrick says, "Wait, Elliot is the father of her baby?" he asks in confusion.

"Yes, apparently so, and that bitch couldn't wait to rub it in my face!" Addison whimpers and I can see that she is trying not to burst into tears.

"What?" Grace shoots up from the couch and looks towards Elliot in anger.

Elliot shoots up from his seat and yells, "I didn't sleep with her!"

Grace shakes her head, and Carrick puts his head in his hands. He rubs his face and tiredly says, "Elliot start from the beginning, please." Grace sighs and sits back down. I can see from her expression that she is embarrassed by her reaction.

Christian's hands are balled into fists, and he is gritting his teeth and shooting daggers at Elliot. I can tell that he wants to punch him in the face for hurting his sister. Christian has become quite protective of Addison. Even though Elliot is like a brother to him, he would still knock him to the ground in a heartbeat if he breaks his sister's heart.

I take hold of Christian's hand and try to calm him down. He relaxes slightly but continues to stare at Elliot as if he wants to slug him.

I look over at Elliot who swallows hard before sitting back down. He looks towards Addison who is ignoring him and instead staring out the window. I can see her eyes turn glassy when Elliot starts to explain.

"We were at that party a while back like I told you and Kate was there. She has always been rather…. Flirty towards me," Elliot squirms and then shutters.

Addison huffs, turns her head away, and then crosses her arms over her chest.

"Throughout the night she would try to touch me, ask me to dance with her, but I refused her advances and told her to fuck off, but she wouldn't listen. I was drinking a lot that night, and I don't really remember anything after the sixth shot, but I do remember waking up in one of the spare bedrooms and finding…" He stops and closes his eyes tightly.

I close my eyes myself and dread what he is going to say next. Christian tenses beside me.

"I was naked, and I found a condom wrapper next to me. I…I freaked out and got dressed and ran from the room. She came over to my place a few hours after I came home and started telling me that we need to tell you that were together now, and in love. The bitch is fucking crazy!" He says in disgust and looks over at Addison who is now crying.

"You did sleep with her," she whimpers.

"No, no, I didn't! I admit I was drunk, but I know that I didn't sleep with her! Even if something _did_ happen, she took advantage of me! I was drunk off my ass, and she saw that as an opportunity to get me into bed. I swear to God, baby I didn't sleep with her!" Elliot says desperately and falls on his knees in front of her.

Addison puts her head in her hands and weeps. We sit there staring at them for a few minutes before Carrick speaks.

"You said honey that she couldn't wait to rub it in your face. What did you mean by that?"

Addison looks at her father with bloodshot eyes and tries to wipe her tears with her shirt. Elliot is still on his knees in front of her. Grace gets up and retrieves a few tissues and hands them to her. She takes them gratefully as Grace stands behind her and rubs her back.

"My friend Nicole had a birthday party tonight, and while we were there, Kate showed up and tried to drag Elliot away from the group. She said that she had enough of him not being there for her and their baby and that she wanted him to leave and come back to her apartment. Of course, I was frozen in shock to what she said, she saw my expression and smugly smiled at me and told me that she and Elliot have been sleeping together since that party and the baby was his," She explains.

Elliot shakes his head and tries to wipe her tears, but she slaps his hand away and then gets up and runs from the room while crying.

"Baby, wait!" Elliot gets up and takes off behind her.

I sigh and look over at Christian and see his eyes closed. He sighs and looks over at me, and I give him a small smile.

"Carry, what can we do?" Grace sits down next to him.

He sighs and rubs his face. "Well, we need a paternity test for sure. If she _did_ take advantage of him, then he can always report her to the authorities."

"What if the baby isn't his? I mean I don't believe that Elliot would do that. I know he loves her and would never do something like that," I shake my head.

Carrick gives me a half smile and shrugs. "I don't believe he would do that either, but we still need a paternity test," he says.

We all sit in silence for a little while, lost in our own thoughts. Carrick breaks the silence after five more minutes. "Let's all head to bed. It's late."

Carrick and Grace get up from the couch and comes to hug both of us before heading to their bedroom.

Christian takes my hand and leads me up the stairs. While in the hallway, we hear raised voices coming from Addison's bedroom, though not as loud as before. Christian shakes his head and leads me down the hall to our room. I check the baby monitor and see that he is still asleep before getting under the covers.

Christian rolls onto his side and kisses my cheek. "What a good way to start the day," I sigh and cuddle up to him.

"I'll say," he snorts and puts his arm around me.

"Do you think they will be okay?" I murmur.

"I'm sure they will, baby. They just need to talk it out. If that bitch did take advantage of him, then she will get what is coming to her," he sighs.

I agree and cuddle up against his chest. I close my eyes and will myself to fall back asleep, but after twenty minutes, I can't seem to shut my brain off to what just happened.

I can't believe Kate would do that. I do know that he would never cheat on her, but is she capable of doing something like that? Or did she just make it look like they slept together? I shake my head at this whole situation.

After a peaceful few months, the drama starts again, and I have a feeling that it is not going to end anytime soon.

* * *

 _ **AN: I have some time off of classes for the next few weeks, so I am going to try to update as much as I can. FYI, new username: PassionForGrey.**_

 _ **Thank you for reading and reviewing. Pinterest is update.**_


	36. Chapter 35

_**Ana**_

Christian and I wake up to the crying sound of our son the next morning. After getting up and getting dressed, we both walk into our son's nursery. Christian leans down and carefully picks him up from his crib.

"Hey, baby boy. Did you sleep well?" he murmurs and then kisses his head.

Christian smiles down at him while he only stares up at his father. Christian chuckles and kisses his nose. I smile as Christian hands me him so that I can change his diaper.

I walk over to the changing table and get to work on changing his diaper while I talk animatedly about the day ahead.

"And mommy and daddy are planning on taking you for a walk by the water. Would you like that baby boy?" I coo down at him while fastening his blue pajamas that has cute little airplanes all over them.

Carson stares up at me with his fist in his mouth. He suddenly takes his fist out and sneezes before shoving his fist back in his mouth. I giggle and pick him up. Christian chuckles as we walk down the stairs. We head into the kitchen, and I am surprised when I find Jack and Carrick sitting at the dining table. They are both in a heated discussion when we walk into the kitchen.

They both stop talking and look up at us. Jack looks uncomfortable while Carrick seems irritated. He smiles tightly at me before sipping his coffee.

Carrick's eyes light up when he spots his grandson in my arms. He gets up and holds out his hands asking me if he can hold him. I nod and gently place him into his waiting arms.

"Good morning," he coos down at him before kissing his hair.

"Did you both get any sleep?" He asks after a few seconds of staring down at him.

"We did. Where is everybody else?" Christian asks as he makes himself a cup of coffee.

"Grace went into the hospital for an early appointment, and Elliot and Addison are still upstairs. They are probably still asleep," he explains.

I nod and look up towards the stairs, wondering if they are awake or still talking about what happened last night. I hope they worked it out. I hate to see them breaking up over this when we don't know for sure if Elliot is the father of Kate's baby. _God, I hope not._

I turn back around when I hear Jack clearing his throat awkwardly. "We need to talk, Christian," he says apprehensively.

Christian looks at him confused before taking a sip of his coffee and then turns towards the floor to ceiling windows. "Like what?" he says coldly.

I stare at them for a second before looking at Carrick. He sighs and hands me the baby. He kisses his head before returning to the table.

"Jack has something he wants to tell you. Both of you," Carrick looks at me pointedly.

I frown and walk over to the bassinet that we keep down here, and place Carson on his back. I run my hand down his chest as he rubs his eyes. He yawns and closes his eyes before opening them again. I smile and turn around to head back into the kitchen.

I sit down beside Carrick while Christian continues to stand by the windows that overlook the water. His back is ramrod straight, and his hands shoved into his jean pockets.

Jack heavily sighs before looking over at me. "I know why you both were evicted from your apartment," he shifts uncomfortably.

I blink slowly at him and then deeply frown. I suddenly jump when I hear Christian yell. "What!"

I turn around and tell him to be quiet because I don't want him to wake the baby.

"What are you talking about?" he snaps and glares at Jack.

Jack grits his teeth for a second before he relaxes before speaking, "Leila is the one who complained to your landlord about the noise complaints. She also gave money to your neighbors, so they can also complain to get you convicted."

My eyes widen, and my mouth drops open _. Leila?_ _Why would she do that?_

Jack looks down in embarrassment while we sit there in silence. I slowly turn my head towards Christian. He stares at Jack, completely baffled at what he just said.

"What the hell? Why would she do that?" I finally say after a moment of tense silence.

Jack sighs and runs his hand through his hair. "She is friends with Kate, well was friends with Kate. Apparently, Kate wanted Christian when she first met him, and when Leila first met him, she wanted him. When Kate knew she never had a chance with him, she went after Elliot. Leila saw the same thing with Ana, and when you got pregnant, she got pissed. That is when she planned the whole eviction scheme. She also gave some money and a tip that you had money to those men who trashed your apartment," he explains.

I sit there stunned into silence. I really don't know what to think or what to feel. I mean, I know that Kate is a bitch and wouldn't put what she did past her, but Leila? Why the hell would she go through all of that just because she couldn't have Christian?

Christian bring me out of my thoughts when I hear him huff loudly and slam his hands on the kitchen island. "Unbelievable," he hisses.

I sigh and rub my eyes. Carrick shakes his head and continues to sip his coffee.

Christian turns around and glares at Jack. "Did you know what she was up to?" he snaps.

Jack sits up straight and glares back. "No. I didn't know. Yes, I didn't like you, but I wouldn't do something like that. I might be a prick, but I don't purposely set out to harm you or your girlfriend. Especially when she is carrying my nephew," he snaps.

"Wife. Not girlfriend," Christian hisses.

Jack rolls his eyes. "She wasn't your wife back then, shithead."

Christian suddenly lunges for Jack, but before he can get to him, Carrick intercedes. "That is enough! Both of you!" he snaps.

Christian stops when Carrick slightly pushes him back.

"This animosity between you two has to stop. You are brothers whether you like it or not, so I suggest you man up and stop fighting with each other," Carrick demands while I see Addison and Elliot emerge from the stairs in my peripheral vision.

I sigh and look towards them. Addison is barefoot and fresh-faced, wearing gray leggings, a white camisole, and a long pink cardigan, while Elliot is wearing some of Christian's lounge pants and his black long-sleeved shirt.

I sigh in relief when I see them holding hands. _It look's like they worked it out, Thank God._

Christian sees Elliot and Addison in the kitchen, and he rolls his eyes when he see's Elliot wearing his clothes.

"OH, yes, please do help yourself to my clothes, fuckwad."

"I did," Elliot smirks and flips him off.

Addison giggles and slaps his chest. Elliot looks down at her and shrugs playfully.

Jack give them a crooked smirk while Carrick tries hard not to smile.

Carrick shakes his head and sits back down at the table. We all follow him and sit down. Christian sighs and puts his arm around my waist and kisses my shoulder.

We all sit in silence for a few seconds before Jack breaks it. "I broke up with her, by the way."

Christian stares at him blankly, and when Jack sees's that he is not going to react he continues. "I found out a few weeks ago. That's why she hasn't been around here lately."

I quickly quirk my eyebrow before looking at Addison. She stares at her brother confused, and Jack explains again what happened. Elliot seems pissed while Addison looks at him horrified.

"Wow," she says perplexed.

"Fucking bitch," Elliot hisses. _All these crazy bitches._ I hear Elliot mumble under his breath.

I nod, and Christian shakes his head in disgust. I then ask Carrick what we can do about Leila, and he says he will take care of it and not to worry. As far as we're concerned, we won't hear or see Leila again which is a relief because if I ever see her again, I will probably need Carrick's help in bailing me out of jail for kicking her ass.

After a few moments of silence, Carrick looks over at his daughter. "Did you two talk it out last night when we went to bed?"

Addison looks down embarrassed before nodding her head. "Yeah. I feel like an idiot for the way I acted last night." She looks over at me. "I'm sorry I was yelling. I hope I didn't wake up the baby," she murmurs.

I shake my head. "No, it's okay," I smile, and she gives me one back.

Christian is quietly observing Jack while he talks business with Carrick. Addison and Elliot are in their own little world while I cuddle up next to Christian. When there is a lull in Jack and Carrick's conversation, Christian speaks up. "Why have you been acting like you have these last few months?"

Jack frowns as he stares at Christian. "What are you talking about?"

"All _buddy buddy_ towards us?" He rolls his eyes.

Jack's eyes widen in recognition. He sighs and then shrugs. "Why do you think? You're my brother. You might want to keep butting heads forever, but I don't. Yes, I hated you in the beginning, despised you even, but as time went on, I got over it," he says matter-of-factly.

Christian narrows his eyes. "You honestly think I would believe that you just got over it? Just like that?"

Jack shrugs. "I don't care if you believe me. It's the truth, and I have more important things to do than hate you forever. As a matter of fact, I have those _more important things_ to do right now."

Without breaking eye contact with Christian, he smirks and drains his coffee. He stands up from the table and pointedly says, " _Brother_ ," before walking out of the kitchen and out the front door.

Christian sits there perplexed. I bite my lip and look over at him. He shakes his head, still baffled at Jack's answer. Addison and Elliot suddenly laugh bringing him out of his daze. Christian rolls his eyes and mumbles, _whatever_ under his breath causing me to smirk.

Carrick chuckles and gets up to start making breakfast for all of us while I check on the baby.

* * *

"Are you ready to see Aunt, Priscilla?" I smile down at Carson who is awake, looking at his surroundings.

I push the stroller up to Grayson's and Priscilla's front door and dig through my purse to find my keys. Priscilla called me this morning asking if I can come over to have lunch with her. She said she had something important she wanted to talk about.

After eating breakfast with everyone, and spending time with Addison for a few hours, I went upstairs and got dressed in a black and white striped dress that fell to my knees, and paired it with a green army jacket and white chucks.

I find the keys and just unlock the door without knocking since Priscilla was adamant that I don't knock and just to come inside.

I push the stroller into the foyer and shut the door behind me. I push Carson right into the living room and am distracted when I try to put my keys back into my purse and push the stroller at the same time. When I finally get them in my purse, I look up, and my eyes widen, and I gasp in shock.

Grayson is standing naked by the couch and Priscilla is down on her knees sucking him off. They both freeze when they hear me gasp. I throw my hand over my eyes when Priscilla pops him out of her mouth, and I get my first glimpse of his penis that can rival Christian's.

"Oh, my God, I am so sorry," I say mortified at what I just walked into.

I turn around when Grayson scrambles to get dressed.

"You told me to come over, I'm sorry," I apologize again.

"No, it's okay. I'm the one who is sorry. I didn't know you will be here that fast," she chuckles nervously.

I cringe and nod my head and wait for him to get dressed. I try not to giggle when I hear Carson start to coo at Grayson who I am assuming is dressed and picking him up from his stroller.

"You can look now," he smirks.

He is now dressed in white pajama pants, and his chest is still bare which causes me to turn beet red. He sees my blush which makes him flex his pecks and winks at me. I look down embarrassed and let out a small giggle.

Priscilla rolls her eyes and shoos Grayson out of the living room. He bows his head and walks out with his nephew in his arms.

"Ana, I'm sorry about that," she points his thumb in the direction of where Grayson went.

"It's okay. I should have called before I came over here earlier than expected," I shake my head still embarrassed of walking in on their private moment.

She smiles and guides me to the couch where we sit down. She beams at me and then suddenly holds out her hand and wiggles her fingers. I look down and gasp in surprise when I find an incredible large oval diamond ring on her finger.

I squeal and hug her causing her to laugh. "Oh, my, God. Congratulations! When did he propose?" I beam at her.

"Thank you! He proposed last night," she giggles and tucks her blonde hair behind her ears.

I look at her in awe and hug her once more. We sit there and talk for a few minutes, and after animatedly telling me how he proposed at sunset, I tell her about what happened last night.

"Are you kidding me? That bitch," she shakes her head in anger.

"I know. I can't believe it myself," I sigh and fiddle with my fingers in my lap.

"Do you think Elliot is the father?" she chews on her bottom lip.

I shake my head again, "No, I don't. Elliot would never cheat on her. What I am worried about is if she actually took advantage of him when he was unconscious."

She shakes her head in disgust, and I nod my head agreeing with her. I am about to say something else when their house phone rings. "One second," she says as she gets up.

She answers and looks over at me with a frown. "Yeah, hang on. It's Christian," she says and hands me the phone.

I frown and take the phone from her. "Hey?"

"Hey, you might want to come home," he sighs over the line.

"Why?"

"Elliot called. We were right; he didn't cheat on Addison. It was a setup; Kate never had sex with him. She just made it look like they did to break them both up," he spits out, and I close my eyes in astonishment. "She is here causing trouble," he growls.

I look over at Priscilla, and she is staring at me intently. "I will be there soon," I say and hang up the phone.

"What's going on?" she asks.

I tell her what Christian told me and she gasps. "I cannot believe that skank!"

I nod and get up from the couch. She tells me that she is going to get dressed quickly and to explain to Grayson what's going on. I nod while she heads upstairs, and I wait on the couch.

Grayson comes into the living room and hands me, Carson. He goes upstairs to get dressed, and I place him back in his stroller and sit and wait for them to finish getting ready all the while wondering what type of shitstorm awaits us when we get there.

* * *

 _ **AN: This story is winding down. A few more chapters to go. :( I will try to update as soon as possible.**_

 _ **Thank you for all the reviews and all the new followers. Pinterest has been updated.**_


	37. Chapter 36

_**Ana**_

"Are you ready?" Priscilla suddenly says behind me.

I turn around and see she is dressed in white shorts, and a white striped shirt. Grayson is behind her wearing jeans and a dark blue shirt.

I nod and thank Grayson for pushing the stroller out to my car. I get Carson loaded into the car and Priscilla, and Grayson gets in the back.

Twenty minutes later, we arrive at the house. I cringe when I hear shouting coming from inside when I hop out of the car.

"Good, God. What the hell?" Grayson snaps when he suddenly hears Addison screaming.

My eyes widen when I see Grayson run up to the house and open the front door. Priscilla frowns before she runs right behind him.

I hurriedly lift Carson's car seat from its base and head into the house where the yelling grows louder. I startle when I hear a glass shatter coming from the living room.

I look down at Carson who is wide awake due to the loud noise. I contemplate what to do because I don't want Carson in the living room when they're yelling, so I decided to head into the sitting room beside the foyer. I take Carson out of this car seat and set up the extra pack-in-play that we keep in the front hall closet. I place him down and make sure he has his pacifier before closing the French doors and walking into the living room.

I stop in surprise when I see Christian and Grayson holding Elliot back while Addison is shouting in Kate's face. Carrick is pacing near the kitchen.

"You are a disgrace. You shouldn't deserve to keep that baby," Addison spits at her.

Addison is now dressed in pink skinny jeans and a long white shirt. Kate is starring at her in horror while her arms are wrapped around her stomach. She was dressed in a long floral maxi dress, and her face is free of makeup.

"I can't believe you just said that! I do deserve my baby!" Kate snaps.

"Oh, please. What type of person would do what you did to my boyfriend?" Addison scoffs.

Kate rolls her eyes. "Oh, stop being so dramatic. I didn't sleep with him, you bitch. There! Your precious _boyfriend_ didn't cheat on you. Are you happy?"

"No, I am not happy. You were my friend. I can't believe you would stoop that low," Addison huffs.

Kate rolls her eyes again. "You know what, whatever. Your boyfriend isn't that hot anyway," she flips her hair and turns around. Kate looks over her shoulder and adds, "Your loss, Elliot. Have fun with your boring, ugly, ass girlfriend."

"Ugh, if you weren't pregnant, I would beat your fake ass," Addison snaps.

"Let me go, man," Elliot snaps at Christian and Grayson.

They move away from Elliot causing him to glare at them before making his way to Addison who is glaring at Kates retrieving back. Grayson shakes his head at Elliot while Christian runs his hand through his hair in exasperation.

Kate walks towards me and smirks when she spots me in the archway of the foyer.

"Well, well, look who it is. The pathetic homeless girl. Has pretty boy gotten tired of you and your brat yet?" She stops in front of me and smiles smugly at me.

"You mean the pretty boy who wouldn't give you the time of day?" I smile sweetly at her.

I inwardly roll my eyes at her and cross my arms. Her smile vanishes from her face, and she glares at me for a second before she scoffs.

"He couldn't handle a woman like me anyway. Good luck with him, honey. Girls like you won't hang on to a guy like him for much longer anyway," She shrugs and walks to the front door.

Christian growls when he hears her words causing him to storm over in our direction. "Leave!" He yells at Kate. He reaches me right before Kate slams the front door, but not before flipping him off.

"You okay?" he looks at me in concern.

"Yes. Don't worry; she didn't get to me," I smile at him.

Kate can say whatever she wants. She doesn't know our history, or that Christian and I belong together. She is just pissed and lashing out because she didn't get the guys in the end.

"Fuck her," Christian growls and I agree.

"Where is the baby?" he looks around while rubbing my arms.

"I put him in his pack-in-play in the front room. He is probably asleep," I look towards the closed French doors.

Christian nods and kisses me. "What happened before we got here?" I spot everyone walking out of the living room and into the kitchen when Christian speaks.

"She got here mouthing off again about Elliot and how he needed to step up with the baby, but Addison got in her face and told her that Elliot isn't the father. Kate got pissed, and they started yelling at each other, and Kate slipped up about her plan to pawn the baby off as his".

I look at him appalled as he continues, "Apparently, she had sex with another guy that night, and when she saw Elliot drunk off his ass, she followed him upstairs. She saw him passed out in one of the rooms and took his clothes off and set the condom they used next to him to make it look like they slept together."

Christian shutters and I look at him disgusted. "She is insane."

He agrees. "How did she end up pregnant when they used a condom?" I frown.

"She planned it, so I bet she pocked a hole in the condom," He shrugs.

I shake my head and shudder in disgust. "That could have been you if she was out for you in the beginning."

Christian shakes his head, "No, way. Don't even go there, baby. I love you. I wouldn't even put myself in that situation in the first place."

"I know. It's just outrageous," I sigh.

He kisses me before saying, "Come on, Carrick wants to talk with you," Christian takes my hand and gestures towards the kitchen.

"For what?" I frown.

"He wouldn't say," he shakes my head.

We head into the kitchen where everyone is sitting at the table. We sit down beside Grayson and Priscilla.

"Well, that was an interesting afternoon," Carrick grumbles.

We all chuckle and Addison rub Elliot's back when he looks down in embarrassment.

"Ana," Carrick gets my attention.

"Yes?" I squirm in my seat wondering what Carrick wants to tell me.

"Were you aware that your mother had a brother?"

"Um, no. I thought she was an only child since she never mentioned siblings. Why?" I frown in confusion.

"Remember back when we were at your gender reveal appointment?" he sighs.

I try to rack my brain and think about my appointment, but I can't recall anything of them asking about Carla's siblings. "Vaguely. What about it?" I shake my head.

"When the nurse said Steele, Grace and I remembered that name from somewhere, then when we both got home, I remembered about a man who approached me one day a few years ago. He asked me to investigate his sister's daughter who went into the system when she was four years old. He said his last name was Steele," Carrick stares at me intently.

I sit there flabbergasted. I never knew my birth mother had a brother. She never spoke about her family to me. She only talked about how Ella was her one and only family. Thinking back to the first four years of my life suddenly brings tears to my eyes. Christian wraps me in his arms and Priscilla takes my hand in hers.

Carrick continues, "He told me that he has been trying to find you but was unsuccessful. He also revealed that he had a medical diagnosis and that he needed to track you down immediately."

"He presented a will that he had drawn up the month before. It turned out he didn't have a lot of time left and wanted to meet you before…," he hesitates.

"Before what?" I stutter.

"Before he passes away," He murmurs.

I gasp and cover my mouth with my hand. Carrick passes me a thick envelope that I didn't realize he had sitting next to him. I shakily grab it and open the envelope to reveal a paper that I am assuming is his will.

 _ **Living Will**_ is the first thing I see. I start to read the first paragraph and absentmindedly begin to trace my uncle's name. _Raymond Steele._

My lip quivers and I must blink back tears that threaten to fall. I sniff and continue to read. My breath hitches when I see the contents of the will.

"What is it, baby?" Christian asks in concern.

"He left me a house. His house," I whisper in shock.

I look up at Christian, and his eyes widen in shock. He takes the papers out of my hands and reads before I hear Carrick speak, "I asked him to give me some time to track you down, but before I can locate you, he passed away two weeks later," He says carefully.

I gasp and whimper. I close my eyes and a few tears escape. Christian puts the papers down and takes me into his arms. Priscilla rubs my back as I silently cry into his chest.

After a few minutes, I lean back and wipe my eyes with my hands. Christian hands me a tissue that Addison gives him. I see Addison crying and wiping her eyes with her own tissue while Priscilla does the same. Grayson looks at me sympathetically as well as Elliot.

"What did he die from?" I murmur as I stare at the will.

"Hodgkin lymphoma," Carrick murmurs.

I nod and sniffle. I can't believe I have an uncle. I had a family this whole time, and I didn't even know. I can't help but think what my life would have been like if he adopted me or took me in when my mother died.

"Why didn't he come for me when my mother died?" I ask Carrick.

He sighs and says, "He was in the Navy and had been deployed those first four years of your life. He told me that he never knew his sister had a baby, their parents never mentioned it to him."

"After being in the service for most of his early life, he got out and went back home to Texas. His mother, your grandmother, passed away a few days after that and revealed that he had a niece a few hours before she passed. He has been trying to find you ever since. When he found out about the lymphoma, he had a will drawn up when the doctors told him it was stage 4 which had lower chances of survival."

I nod and sniffle again. Carrick continues, "After finding out about the passing, I continued to look for you with no such luck. That's why I asked you about your appointment because when the nurse said your last name was Steele, I remembered hearing it, but I couldn't remember exactly where I heard it from. That was about two years before I met you."

He looks guilty for some reason. I frown when he continues. "I'm sorry, Ana. When I remembered, it took me awhile to get my hands on that will since it's been a few years. I didn't say anything because I didn't know you were his niece. Yes, you had a similar name, but I also didn't want to say anything when I didn't have all the facts. I finally received the will a few days ago, and I wanted to sit down with you earlier, but with all the Kate drama, it wasn't an appropriate time."

I give him a weak smile and shake my head. "It's okay. I'm not mad, just upset about the situation. I just wish my mother would have told me about my uncle. It's also overwhelming," I weakly giggle and wipe my nose.

"I understand," he murmurs and takes my hand into his.

I squeeze his hand and thank him. Christian presses me into his side and softly kisses my hair.

* * *

"What do you think?" Christian whispers to me while we are in bed that night.

We are laying side by side, staring into each other's eyes.

"I can't believe it. Fifty thousand dollars, Christian." I shake my head.

Ray also put in his will that I receive fifty thousand dollars and his house that he owns a few miles outside of _Bloomfield Hills_.

He also provided me a heartfelt letter about how sorry he was and that he wanted to make it up to me for everything his parents did to his sister. He told me that he loved me and sorry he didn't get a chance to meet me before he died. I cried into Christian's shoulder for a while after I read his letter. I wish I could have met him, but I am glad that I had an uncle who loved me.

"I want to set that money aside for Carson. I want him to go to college. I don't want him to worry about student loans," I murmur while playing with Christian's fingers.

"I agree. I don't want him to struggle as we did for so long," Christian runs his hand through my hair.

I nod and close my eyes. I sigh contently as Christian continues to run his hand through my hair.

"I'm glad, Jason is okay," I say after a few minutes of silence.

"Yeah, me too," he murmurs.

Jason called us a few hours ago. He told us that the managers at the shelter told him we were trying to look for him. He said that he was staying with an old buddy whose name was Sawyer who he met in the Military. I smiled when Christian said he found a job at a mechanics shop where his friend worked and that he was fine and trying to get his life together.

After a few minutes of conversation, Jason promised us that he would come visit with his godson soon before he hung up. Christian and I both shed a few tears over our beloved friend and how happy we were for him. Most of all that he was okay.

I look up at Christian and cup his face with one of my hands. "I love you," I whisper against his lips.

"I love you too. Forever and always," he whispers back before kissing me passionately.

* * *

 _ **AN: I am not a lawyer, so there will be mistakes about the information of the Will and process.**_

 _ **This is the last chapter before the epilogue. I was planning on writing a few more chapters, but as I was writing this chapter, I felt it was complete. I didn't have much time as I thought I would this week to write, so it might take a little bit before I have the epilogue posted. I will try my best to have it out soon.**_

 _ **Thank you for all the feedback and support. Pinterest is updated.**_


	38. Epilogue

_**Epilogue**_

 _ **Two Years Later**_

 _ **Ana**_

"I know pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride," The minister declared.

I beam at Elliot and Addison who are sharing their first kiss as a married couple. I clap and give Addison back her flowers before they start to walk down the aisle. The wedding guests are all smiles as Elliot and Addison beam at everybody in attendance.

Elliot's best man comes forward and offers me his arm so that we can follow behind them. I smile up at Christian as he winks. He looks smoking hot in his black suit with a plush pink bow-tie that matches our bridesmaid dresses.

I smile as I see Addison practically float down the aisle in her beautiful long white lace off-the-shoulder wedding dress. I look down and with one hand, smooth down my maid of honor dress which is vintage and plush pink color. Priscilla and Addison's other bridesmaid, Hannah, is dressed in a sheer lace crew neck chiffon gown.

Grayson and Jack are Elliot's groomsman, and they are all in matching black suits with a blush pink bow-tie.

While we are walking down the aisle, I see my baby boy in Grace's arms while he bounces up and down and clapping happily at his aunt and uncle. We both laugh as we follow Elliot and Addison out of the white silk tent.

Today is Elliot and Addison's wedding. They have been engaged for the past six months, and after thorough planning, they have finally become husband and wife. They decided to get married at sunset in Grace and Carrick's backyard. The reception is taking place in a large white tent by the water.

I smile and think back to the last few years as we wait while Elliot and Addison are taking their wedding pictures. A month after Carrick presented me the will, we moved out of Grace and Carrick's home and moved into our new house. It is a simple modern design one-story house with three bedrooms, two bathrooms, and a big backyard. The house is perfect, and 100% ours since Ray paid it off a few months before he passed away.

We also put all the money that Ray gave us into a savings account for Carson for when he gets older. We wanted to make sure he had enough money to attend college if he wanted when the time comes.

Our baby boy is a healthy, happy two-year-old. He is in his terrible two's right now, but underneath the tantrums, and his favorite word, NO, he is the sweetest and smartest little boy. Always on the go, and keeps Christian and I on our toes most of the time.

Grayson and Priscilla had a long engagement and finally tied the knot one year after he proposed. They went off on their honeymoon in Bali for two weeks right after their reception. Since their wedding, they have been traveling these last six months since Priscilla wanted to take some time to travel around the world before they started to think about starting a family. They wanted alone time together, just the two of them before they take that next step into parenthood.

Elena and her husband are still happily married and thriving in their respected businesses. Addison, Grace and I make it a habit of coming and visiting Elena often at her salon for girl time. Elena has become another mother figure to me, and I'm grateful to have her in my life. She often babysits for us during the week and, Carson loves going to work with her. All the ladies just eat him up, and he loves all the female attention. He will definitely break some hearts when he gets older.

Jack and Christian's relationship has become better than it was two years ago. They are not best friends or anything, but they definitely can hold a conversation with each other without wanting to kill each other. Underneath the shitty attitude and arrogance, Jack turned out to be a good guy once you get to know him. He is very sweet, loyal to his family and actually quite funny.

We haven't heard from Leila, and to our knowledge, she moved to Washington to follow an older, successful businessperson who wanted to expand his business over there. A few months ago, we found out they are getting married next month. The businessman is over 55 years old, and I still shake my head at that because all along she was just with Jack for his money and what he could give her. I do hope that man has a strong, stable prenup in place.

It turns out that Kate is just like her beloved friend Leila. She had her baby a few months after she revealed her plan to trap Elliot. She is still unemployed and was living with her well-off boyfriend in downtown Detroit. The father of her baby was a random guy she met at the party, and Mia told me that the guy doesn't want anything to do with her or the baby.

Kate's parents kicked her out when they found out about what she did to Elliot. I heard from Ethan that her new boyfriend is a drug leader who just recently got caught by the FBI two days ago. It turns out Kate has been helping him distribute, and she has also been arrested and imprisoned. She is now in jail and not planning to get out anytime soon. CPS took the baby, and now Kate's parents have full custody of her daughter, Ava.

Kate and Ethan's parents ended up being genuine about them wanting to make amends with their son. Ethan and Mia are still together, and Liam and Lola are healthy and thriving. We are in regular contact with both of them. Ethan and Mia came over one weekend when we had our housewarming party at our new house. They both apologize again for skipping town and abandoning their kids. We all had a long talk after everyone left and after that, our relationship went back to normal. I am glad because I missed her friendship, and we make sure we spend time with them at least once a month.

Jason is now working full time with his buddy, Sawyer, and has his own apartment near the shop where he works. Jason tries to visit us regularly, and he is Carson's second favorite person, while his uncle _Lelliot_ is his first.

A few months ago, I landed my first job at a daycare center where I can take Carson with me, which I love. I am also currently looking into several local community colleges around the area. I am excited and looking forward to expanding my education.

Christian is still working for Grayson and got promoted when Carson turned one year old. He is now a supervisor at the company, and I couldn't be prouder of him and all his hard work. He loves working with his brother, and Ethan also was hired to replace Christian at his old job. Ethan and Mia now have moved out of his parent's house and into an apartment near Grey Construction.

Elliot is still working at Chrysler and here recently got a promotion. They both moved in together a month before the wedding and bought a house a few miles away from Carrick and Grace. Addison graduated from culinary school and is now working full time as a chef at a gourmet restaurant in downtown.

I am pulled out of my trip down memory lane when Christian kisses my forehead. "Time for the reception," he whispers in my ear.

"Let's go," I smile as our baby boy walks over to us. He giggles and gestures to his dad that he wants to be held.

Christian laughs and picks him up. He launches him into the air causing him to burst out into a fit of giggles.

"Gain, daddy," Carson giggles.

Christian obliges and launches him into the air once more. He places him on his hip and kisses his copper hair.

"Come on, mommy," Christian smiles.

I take his hand and follow the crowd into the tent where the reception is held.

* * *

The night continues, and after the cake is cut and all the food has been eaten, Christian and I dance one last time before Elliot and Addison leave for their honeymoon. Grace and Carrick presented them a week's vacation to Hawaii, which they will leave later tonight.

I look over at Grace who is dancing with Carson. Laughter is erupting from everyone when Carson starts dancing on his own, and Grace mimics his uncoordinated dancing skills.

Christian chuckles and I burst out laughing at the cute scene. Carrick laughs as he picks up Carson and they all three dance together.

"It was a beautiful wedding," I smile at Christian a few minutes later.

"It was. Never in a million years would I think I would be here today. Wearing this pink tie," Christian smirks causing me to laugh.

"Aw, you look cute, Mr. Grey," I giggle and straighten his tie.

"Why, thank you, Mrs. Grey," he chuckles and kisses my lips.

I sigh contently and lay my head on Christian's chest and marvel at how far we have come these last three years while everyone continues to dance on the dancefloor.

* * *

"Be careful, honey," I yell out to Carson who is trying to climb up on his dogs back.

It has been two months since the wedding, and we are in our backyard, enjoying the lovely warm weather. We just got a golden retriever a few weeks ago, and Carson just loves him.

Right now, he is trying to hop on his back, which causes the dog to bark happily up at his favorite companion. Carson giggles and continues to do it and then gives up when the dog doesn't let him. He runs around the backyard happily while Goldie chases after him.

I smile at the scene and beam up at Christian who is now standing beside me. He sits next to me on one of the patio chairs. He chuckles as he takes me into his lap. He takes a sip of his lemonade and offers me some before kissing me.

"Did you ever think we would be here right now? Happy and living in _a_ home?" Christian whispers into my ear.

I shake my head. "No, but I am glad we are," I tear up at the thought of what we went through most of our life.

I put the glass down and wipe my eyes. Christian squeezes me and kisses my ear. "I'm thankful I always had you," Christian coos into my ear causing me to tear up again.

"We survived, and I know it was because I always had you," I turn my head to look up at Christian.

He smiles and kisses me softly. He leans back, as I lean against his chest. He wraps me in his arms as we watch Carson happily running around the yard, both thinking how our son will never know what uncertainty and fear feel like.

* * *

 _ **AN: Well, this is the end of Surviving with You.** **It's bittersweet because this is by far the favorite of my stories. I will miss it, and I hope you all have enjoyed the story even though I couldn't update as often as I would have liked.**_

 _ **I am planning on writing a new story when I am done with Double Devotion, but I won't post it until I have most of the story written because I don't want to have you all waiting so long between updates.**_

 _ **The story will be OOC/AU and where Christian, like this one, does not have GEH. Our other beloved characters will also be very different than what we have seen in the books.**_

 _ **If you are interested, the title of the story will be; Shades of Ordinary.**_

 _ **Thank you for all the reviews and support of this story from start to finish.**_

 _ **FYI, Addison's wedding dress and bridesmaid dresses can be seen on the SWY Pinterest page.**_


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